REESE    LIBRARY 

OF  THK 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Received 
Accessions  No..^?.*?.^?.^   Shelf  No.... 


FAMOUS  WOMEN   OF  THE    FRENCH    COURT. 

By  IMBERT    DE   SAINT-AMAND. 

Translated  by  Thomas  Sergeant  Perry. 


THE  WIFE  OF  THE   FIRST   CONSUL. 

THE   HAPPY  DAYS; &F  THE    EMPRESS   MARIE   LOUISE. 

MARIE    ANTOINETTE    AND     THE     END     OF    THE     OLD 

REGIME. 

CITIZENESS    BONAPARTE. 
MARIE      LOUISE      AND     THE      DECADENCE     OF     THE 

EMPIRE. 
THE    COURT    OF    THE    EMPRESS    JOSEPHINE. 


MARIE   LOUISE 


AND   THE 


DECADENCE  OF  THE   EMPIRE 

BY 

IMBERT    DE    SAINT-AMAND 


TRANSLATED   BY 
THOMAS  SERGEANT  PERRY 


WITH  PORTRAIT 


NEW  YORK 

CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S   SONS 
1890 


COPYRIGHT,   1890, 
BY  CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS. 


CONTENTS. 


I.    MARIE  LOUISE  AT  SAINT  CLOUD 1 

II.    Moscow 9 

III.  MALET'S  CONSPIRACY 29 

IV.  THE  KETREAT  FROM  RUSSIA 50 

V.    THE  EMPEROR'S  RETURN 08 

VI.   ADULATION 82 

VII.    THE  END  OF  1812 90 

VIII.   THE  CONCORDAT  OF  FONTAINEBLEAU 109 

IX.    THE  COUNT  OF  SAINT  MARSAN 124 

X.    COUNT  OTTO 146 

XL    THE  COUNT  OF  NARBONNE 109 

XII.   THE  REGENCY. 183 

XIII.  LtJTZEN   AND   BAUTZEN 195 

XIV.  THE  ARMISTICE 213 

XV.    MAYENCE 225 

XVI.    THE  LAST  FESTIVITIES 234 

XVII.    THE  RESUMPTION  OF  HOSTILITIES 252 

XVIII.    THE  END  OF  1813 271 

XIX.    THE  BEGINNING  OP  1814 284 

XX.  MARIE  LOUISE'S  FAREWELL.  .                                        .  303 


MARIE   LOUISE 

AND 

THE  DECADENCE  OF  THE  EMPIRE 


MARIE  LOUISE 

AND 

THE  DECADENCE  OF  THE   EMPIRE. 
I. 

MARIE   LOUISE  AT   SAINT  CLOUD. 

MARIE  LOUISE,  after  her  triumphal  progress 
to  Prague,  reached  the  Palace  of  Saint  Cloud 
on  her  return  July  18,  1812,  and  her  arrival  was  an- 
nounced by  the  cannon  of  the  Invalides.  This  para- 
graph appeared  in  the  Moniteur  of  the  21st :  "  Paris, 
July  21st.  A  vast  crowd  took  advantage  of  the 
beautiful  weather  yesterday  to  visit  Saint  Cloud  and 
the  neighboring  country.  At  six  in  the  afternoon 
the  Empress  drove  through  the  park  in  a  barouche. 
When  Her  Majesty  and  the  King  of  Rome  appeared, 
warm  cheers  broke  out  on  all  sides,  and  accompanied 
Her  Majesty  all  the  way."  Sunday,  July  26,  the 
Empress  received,  after  mass  at  the  palace,  in  the 
Apollo  Gallery,  the  great  bodies  of  state  and  persons 
who  had  been  presented  at  court ;  then  going  into  the 
ball-room,  she  gave  audience,  with  her  accustomed 
grace,  to  the  princes  who  held  high  positions,  the 

1 


MARIE   LOUISE. 


ministers,  the  high  officers  of  the  Empire,  the  Grand 
Eagles  of  the  Legion  of  Honor,  and  the  Diplomatic 
Body. 

Marie  Louise  was  not  Regent:  Napoleon  reigned 
and  governed  from  the  heart  of  Russia.  An  auditor 
of  the  Council  of  State  carried  to  him  every  week  the 
reports  and  propositions  of  the  ministers.  The  Min- 
isters of  Police  wrote  to  him  every  day;  and  the 
Emperor  also  received  confidential  notes  from  people 
who,  although  they  held  no  official  position,  were 
commissioned  to  write  to  him  on  questions  of  inter- 
nal policy,  on  the  state  of  public  sentiment,  and 
even  on  literary  subjects.  From  a  distance  of  seven 
hundred  leagues  he  directed  his  vast  empire,  with  its 
one  hundred  and  thirty  departments,  reaching  from 
the  Tiber  to  the  mouths  of  the  Elbe  and  the  Scheldt, 
exactly  as  if  he  had  been  in  his  capital. 

It  was  not  the  Empress,  but  the  Archchancellor 
Cambacerds,  who  presided  at  the  meetings  of  the  min- 
isters. "  Marie  Louise,"  says  the  Baron  of  M£neval, 
"  had  charge  of  nothing  but  the  court  presentations. 
Every  Sunday  she  went  to  mass,  at  which  any  one 
who  had  been  presented  was  allowed  to  be  present. 
After  mass  she  passed  through  the  gallery  before  the 
chapel,  speaking  to  all  who  were  there :  she  also 
received  on  formal  occasions.  Her  timidity  was 
always  noticeable,  and  her  attempts  to  overcome  it 
often  gave  her  an  air  of  awkwardness.  Every  even- 
ing she  received  men  and  women  whose  names  were 
on  the  list  of  invited  guests.  The  Emperor  drew  up 


MARIE   LOUISE   AT   SAINT    CLOUD.  3 

this  list,  and  took  pains  to  choose  such  as  the  Empress 
would  like ;  so  she  always  on  such  occasions  felt  per- 
fectly at  ease,  and  did  the  honors  freely  and  grace- 
fully. She  played  billiards  with  such  persons  as  she 
chose :  whist-tables  were  set,  as  a  matter  of  form,  in 
the  drawing-room  she  was  in,  and  the  evening  ended 
with  singing  or  acting." 

Yet,  in  spite  of  all  the  homage  of  her  attentive  and 
obsequious  courtiers,  Marie  Louise  was  sad.  Far 
from  her  husband,  her  counsellor  and  protector,  this 
woman  of  twenty  felt  lonely  and  homesick.  When  the 
Emperor  was  away,  she  felt  like  a  foreigner  in  France, 
and  longed  for  the  country  in  which  she  had  grown 
up.  Her  first  impression  on  seeing  Saint  Cloud 
without  Napoleon  had  been  very  painful.  "  May 
Heaven  grant  him  a  speedy  return ! "  she  wrote  to 
her  father.  "  For  this  separation  I  find  most  painful, 
and  I  have  not  courage  enough  to  keep  from  com- 
plaining." To  all  the  pomp  and  splendors  that  sur- 
rounded her,  to  the  river  flowing  at  her  feet,  to  the 
great  capital  she  saw  in  the  distance,  to  the  venerable 
trees  in  the  park  of  Saint  Cloud,  to  the  beautiful  view 
glowing  under  the  brilliant  sun,  she  might  have  said 
with  the  poet :  — 

"  You  miss  one  person,  and  all  is  empty." 

Every  evening  when  she  was  enjoying  the  coolness 
of  that  lovely  garden,  her  thoughts  turned  with  mel- 
ancholy to  the  rash  husband  who  was  forever  defying 
fortune.  Why,  she  would  ask  with  a  sigh,  does  he 


MARIE    LOUISE. 


not  take  his  wife  and  son  with  him  ?  Would  he  not 
be  as  happy  in  this  beautiful  park  as  in  the  wild 
steppes  of  Russia?  Had  he  not  fought  battles 
enough,  faced  enough  dangers,  gathered  all  the 
laurels  he  needed  ?  Was  the  empire  which  reached 
from  the  Eternal  City  to  the  Hanseatic  towns  too 
small  for  the  ambition  of  the  younger  son  of  a  poor 
Corsican  family  ?  Should  he  not  be  satisfied  with  the 
control  of  such  an  empire  ?  And  had  not  the  King 
of  Italy,  the  Protector  of  the  Confederation  of  the 
Rhine,  the  Mediator  of  the  Swiss  Confederation, 
the  son-in-law  of  the  Emperor  of  Austria,  and  the 
father  of  the  King  of  Rome,  the  right  to  rest  ?  The 
unbroken  calm  that  prevailed  in  the  young  Empress's 
peaceful  retreat  presented  a  marked  contrast  with 
the  terrible  convulsions  that  were  agitating  the  other 
side  of  Europe.  But  Marie  Louise  was  often  beset 
with  gloomy  presentiments ;  when  lost  in  revery  she 
seemed,  amid  the  silence  of  the  gardens,  to  be  listen- 
ing to  the  distant  echoes  of  a  terrible  war.  It  was 
in  vain  that  her  courtiers  continually  told  her  that 
Napoleon  could  not  be  beaten;  her  good  sense  said 
that  no  man  in  the  world  was  invincible  or  immortal. 
She  tried  to  forget  her  gloomy  thoughts  in  her  affec- 
tion for  the  little  King  of  Rome.  "  My  boy  is  very 
well,"  she  wrote,  August  9;  "every  day  he  becomes 
handsomer  and  stronger ;  he  can  already  walk  alone  ; 
he  has  fifteen  teeth,  but  he  has  not  begun  to  talk." 
Marie  Louise  found  much  comfort  in  her  active  cor- 
respondence with  her  husband  and  her  father,  who, 


MARIE    LOUISE   AT    SAINT    CLOUD,  5 

much  to  her  satisfaction,  seemed  closely  united  and 
much  attached  to  each  other. 

August  15,  1812,  the  Emperor's  birthday  was  cele- 
brated with  its  usual  splendor,  and  the  Empress 
made  a  visit  to  the  Tuileries.  An  enormous  crowd 
greeted  her  with  enthusiasm.  No  bad  news  had  yet 
come  from  the  seat  of  war,  and  every  one  expected 
that  the  wonders  of  Austerlitz,  Jena,  and  Wagram 
were  about  to  be  repeated  by  this  grand  army,  the 
largest  and  finest  that  France  had  ever  sent  forth. 
Absolute  confidence  prevailed,  not  among  wise  and 
thoughtful  people,  —  for  they  already  dreaded  the 
future,  —  but  among  the  multitude,  who  regarded 
Napoleon  as  a  supernatural  being,  a  sort  of  demi- 
god. 

A  few  weeks  later,  the  conqueror's  glory  was  to 
suffer  a  terrible  blow,  but  in  Paris,  August  15,  1812, 
it  was  without  a  shadow.  Early  in  the  morning  the 
firing  of  cannon  announced  the  opening  of  the  cele- 
bration. At  noon  the  Empress-Queen  surrounded  by 
her  ladies  and  officers  in  waiting  received  at  the 
Tuileries,  in  the  Throne  Room,  the  princes  holding 
high  offices,  the  cardinals,  the  high  officers  of  the 
Crown,  the  Grand  Eagles  of  the  Legion  of  Honor, 
the  Princes  of  the  Confederation  of  the  Rhine,  and 
every  one  who  had  admission  to  court.  Napoleon 
was  very  anxious  that  no  details  should  be  omitted 
in  his  absence.  Then  the  Diplomatic  Body  was  intro- 
duced to  the  audience  with  the  usual  formalities. 
When  it  was  over,  the  Empress  betook  herself  to  the 


MARIE    LOUISE. 


chapel  of  the  palace  to  hear  mass,  which  was  said  by 
her  First  Almoner,  Count  Ferdinand  de  Rohan:  it 
was  followed  by  a  Te  Deum.  That  evening  Paer's 
opera,  Numa,  was  given  in  the  palace  theatre,  and 
when  it  was  over,  Marie  Louise  made  her  appearance 
on  the  balcony  of  the  Hall  of  the  Marshals,  and  was 
greeted  with  rapturous  applause  from  the  garden  and 
terraces.  From  the  balcony  she  listened  to  an  out- 
door concert.  Then  there  were  fireworks  on  the 
Place  de  la  Concorde,  after  which  the  Empress 
returned  to  Saint  Cloud. 

The  Grand  Army  also  celebrated  the  Emperor's 
birthday,  and  desired  to  fire  on  the  remote  banks  of 
the  Dneiper  some  salvos  in  Napoleon's  honor.  All 
the  marshals  went  with  their  staffs  to  present  the 
compliments  to  their  sovereign.  At  that  moment 
the  cannon  sounded  in  sign  of  joy,  and  when  the 
Emperor  complained  of  the  waste  of  precious  ammu- 
nition, the  marshals,  with  ingenious  flattery,  answered 
that  the  powder  that  was  used  had  been  captured 
from  the  Russians  at  the  battle  of  Krasnoe.  Alas ! 
neither  he  nor  his  soldiers  had  any  suspicion  of  the 
terrible  disasters  that  were  to  befall  them  three 
months  later  at  that  very  spot.  But  yet  they  were 
depressed :  the  original  faults  of  the  fatal  expedition 
had  begun  to  show  themselves.  Desertions  were 
very  frequent;  the  heat,  as  excessive  as  was  to  be 
the  cold,  had  reached  90°  F.  The  army  was  growing 
wearied  of  this  region  of  plains  and  marshes  into 
which  it  was  plunging  imprudently,  without  getting 


MARIE    LOUISE   AT    SAINT    CLOUD.  7 

sight  of  the  enemy ;  of  this  war  in  which  it  found 
everything  destroyed  before  it ;  of  the  alarming  soli- 
tudes, the  vile  roads,  the  wooden  towns  which  a 
single  torch  had  sufficed  to  set  ablaze.  Already  aban- 
doned by  Turkey  and  Sweden,  from  which  aid  had 
been  expected,  too  timid  to  restore  Poland  in  spite  of 
all  the  heroism  it  displayed,  losing  an  illusion  every 
day  after  he  crossed  the  Niemen,  Napoleon,  who  no 
longer  had  the  health  or  the  ardor  of  his  earlier  days, 
could  not  say  again  what  he  had  said  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  campaign :  "  A  more  favorable  combina- 
tion of  circumstances  could  not  occur.  I  feel  that  it 
is  leading  me  on."  The  conqueror  was  indeed  led 
on,  but  by  fate  to  the  abyss.  Possibly  he  already 
regretted  that  he  had  not  remained  at  Saint  Cloud, 
in  that  charming  spot  where  his  wife  would  have  cele- 
brated his  birthday  with  such  affection,  and  he  might 
have  'celebrated  that  of  the  King  of  Rome.  How 
many  tears,  how  much  bloodshed,  he  would  have 
saved !  Less  than  three  years  later  Bliicher  was  to 
establish  his  headquarters  in  this  same  Palace  of  Saint 
Cloud,  which,  as  well  as  all  the  Imperial  palaces  and 
all  his  grandeur,  wealth,  and  glory,  Napoleon  might, 
with  a  little  wisdom,  so  easily  have  preserved.  The 
tailors  of  the  enemy's  army  set  up  their  workshops 
in  the  theatre.  Prussian  soldiers  caught  goldfish  in 
the  large  basin  under  the  palace  windows.  Bliicher 
slept  with  his  dogs  in  the  chamber  of  Marie  Louise, 
turning  that  abode  of  luxury  into  a  kennel  and  a 
smoking-room.  July  12,  1815,  he  invited  Prince 


8  MARIE    LOUISE. 


Metternich  to  dinner  in  the  dining-room  of  the 
palace,  and  when  after  it  he  was  walking  with  the 
Austrian  minister  through  the  Apollo  Gallery,  he 
said,  "What  a  fool  a  man  must  be,  who  when  he 
has  all  these  fine  things  at  home,  has  to  run  off  to 
Moscow ! " 


II. 

MOSCOW. 

"TVTAPOLEON  was  impatiently  awaiting  the  battle 
jJN  which  should  throw  open  to  him  the  road  to 
Moscow.  September  6,  1812,  the  sun  shone  on  thou- 
sands of  helmets,  bayonets,  and  cannon  on  the  heights 
of  Borodino,  and  the  Emperor,  who  had  bivouacked 
the  previous  night  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Kolocza, 
in  the  midst  of  his  guard,  had  the  satisfaction  of  see- 
ing the  Russians  in  position  and  determined  to  fight. 
At  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning  a  civilian  arrived  be- 
fore his  tent.  He  had  travelled  eight  hundred  leagues ; 
and  all  the  way  from  Saint  Cloud,  his  starting-place, 
to  the  Imperial  headquarters,  he  had  found  the  road 
full  of  soldiers,  marching  alone  or  in  companies ;  the 
wounded  returning  home,  prisoners  going  to  the  rear, 
artillery  trains,  vehicles  of  every  sort;  in  short,  an 
unending  crowd:  France,  Germany,  Italy,  Poland, 
and  yet  other  nations,  seemed  to  be  meeting  on  this 
narrow  way.  Napoleon  received  this  new  arrival 
with  warmth.  It  was  the  Baron  of  Bausset,  Pre- 
fect of  the  Palace,  who  brought  him  news  from  the 
Empress  Marie  Louise,  and  a  portrait  of  the  King  of 


10  MAE1E   LOUISE. 


Rome,  the  masterpiece  of  the  great  artist  Ge'rard. 
This  portrait  was  packed  in  a  box  which  filled  the 
whole  top  of  the  carriage.  M.  de  Bausset  thought 
that  in  view  of  the  decisive  and  long-expected  battle 
that  was  to  be  fought  the  next  day,  the  Emperor 
would  not  care  to  have  the  box  opened ;  but  he  was 
much  mistaken.  Napoleon  forgot  all  other  occupa- 
tions in  his  desire  to  gaze  upon  his  son's  features. 
The  child's  gentle  face  presented  a  great  contrast 
to  the  formidable  preparations  for  the  obstinate  and 
bloody  struggle  of  the  morrow.  Then  he  placed  the 
picture  before  his  tent,  and  summoned  the  officers  of 
his  household  to  share  with  them  his  paternal  joy. 
" Gentlemen,"  he  said  to  them,  "you  may  be  sure 
that  if  my  son  were  fifteen  years  old,  he  would  be 
here,  among  so  many  brave  men,  and  not  in  a  pic- 
ture." A  moment  later  he  added,  "  It  is  an  admira- 
ble portrait."  All  day  long  the  painting  remained 
before  the  father's  tent,  and  the  soldiers  of  the  Old 
Guard  were  never  tired  of  looking  at  it. 

No  day,  indeed,  was  ever  calmer  than  the  one 
before  that  great  battle.  Not  a  shot  was  fired,  as  if 
hostilities  had  ceased  by  agreement.  Why  should 
needless  harm  be  wrought?  Was  not  the  next  day 
to  decide  everything?  In  the  night  the  laughter  of 
the  French,  who  are  always  merry,  even  in  the  face 
of  death,  and  the  hymns  of  the  Russians,  who  had 
been  invoking  the  celestial  sword  of  Saint  Michael  the 
Archangel,  had  at  last  been  silenced  in  sleep.  Both 
armies  were  peacefully  sleeping  around  the  great  fires 


MOSCOW.  11 


that  they  had  lit  against  the  cold  and  the  dampness 
of  a  penetrating  rain  which  had  fallen  in  the  evening. 
Napoleon  did  not  sleep;  the  sudden  change  of  the 
weather  affected  him ;  he  was  feverish  and  troubled 
with  a  dry  cough.  Worn  out  in  body  and  mind,  he 
in  vain  tried  to  quench  his  consuming  thirst.  One 
of  his  aides  heard  him  speaking  about  the  emptiness 
of  glory.  "  What  is  war  ?  "  asked  the  winner  of  so 
many  battles.  "  A  barbarous  business ;  its  whole  art 
is  nothing  but  being  the  stronger  at  a  given  point." 
Then  he  added,  "A  great  day  is  approaching.  It 
will  be  a  terrible  battle."  And  terrible  it  was  to  be. 
Napoleon  was  to  be  victorious,  but  victorious  with- 
out capturing  any  cannon,  any  flags ;  victorious,  but 
with  forty-seven  of  his  generals  and  thirty-seven  of 
his  colonels  killed  or  wounded ;  victorious,  but  the 
defeated  were  also  to  remain  on  the  battle-field,  and 
the  enormous  number  of  ninety  thousand  men,  what 
would  be  the  whole  population  of  a  large  city,  were 
to  be  stretched  on  the  earth,  wounded  or  dead. 

Napoleon  was  not  himself.  Through  fear  of  the 
future  he  did  not  dare  to  call  on  the  Imperial  Guard, 
who  would  have  made  the  victory  decisive.  "  Every 
one  about  him,"  says  the  General  de  Se*gur,  "  gazed 
at  him  with  astonishment.  Previously  in  hot  com- 
bats he  had  displayed  a  calm  activity;  but  now  it 
was  a  dull  calm,  an  inactive,  flaccid  gentleness.  Some 
thought  it  was  the  prostration  that  follows  intense 
emotion  ;  others  that  he  was  tired  of  everything,  even 
of  the  glow  of  the  battle.  Many  have  noticed  that 


12  MARIE   LOUISE. 


this  calm  persistency,  this  coolness  which  great  men 
exhibit  on  momentous  occasions,  turns  with  time  into 
indifference  and  sluggishness,  when  their  fervor  is 
dulled  by  age.  The  most  zealous  explained  his  im- 
mobility as  due  to  the  necessity  of  avoiding  excessive 
change  of  place,  when  in  command  of  a  long  line, 
lest  it  should  be  impossible  to  communicate  with  the 
commander-in-chief."  Alas  !  why  had  he  not  stayed 
at  Saint  Cloud? 

The  victory  itself  was  silent  and  sombre.  In  the 
face  of  this  huge  slaughter,  the  generals  ceased  to 
flatter  him.  During  the  contest,  Marshal  Ney,  indig- 
nant that  Napoleon  refused  to  make  use  of  the  Guard, 
exclaimed  angrily:  "What's  the  Emperor  doing  in 
the  rear  of  the  army  ?  That  is  the  place  for  defeat,  not 
for  success.  If  he  doesn't  want  to  fight  himself,  and 
is  no  longer  general,  and  wants  to  be  Emperor  every- 
where, let  him  go  back  to  the  Tuileries,  and  let  us 
command  in  his  place  !  "  When  Napoleon  returned 
to  his  tent,  a  deep  melancholy  was  added  to  his  physi- 
cal sufferings.  There  is  nothing  gloomier  than  war 
when  one  is  ill.  As  he  himself  said,  "Health  is 
indispensable  in  time  of  war;  nothing  can  take  its 
place."  The  Emperor,  who  had  known  how  to  con- 
quer, was  unable  to  take  advantage  of  his  victory. 
He  stayed  for  three  days  at  Moja'isk,  the  victim  of 
a  severe  fever,  and  was  compelled  by  the  loss  of  his 
voice,  to  write,  instead  of  dictating,  his  orders.  At 
last,  September  12,  he  was  well  enough  to  go  to  the 
front  in  his  carriage.  He  was  but  two  days  from 
Moscow. 


MOSCOW.  13 


Moscow  I  it  was  the  magic  name,  the  proud  name 
which  amid  their  perils  and  sufferings  the  soldiers 
kept  repeating  to  give  themselves  courage.  Moscow 
they  looked  forward  to  as  an  oasis  after  the  blood- 
stained desert.  So,  September  14,  at  two  in  the 
afternoon,  when  the  French  army  reached  the  Moun- 
tain of  the  Salute  (so  called  because  there  the  Rus- 
sians cross  themselves  and  prostrate  themselves  at 
the  sight  of  their  holy  city  from  its  summit),  and 
thence  looked  down  on  the  many-colored  city  spark- 
ling in  the  sun,  with  its  two  hundred  and  ninety-five 
churches,  its  terraces,  its  steeples  with  golden  balls, 
its  fifteen  hundred  castles,  its  vast  gardens,  its  colos- 
sal Kremlin,  their  surprise,  delight,  and  enthusiasm 
exceeded  all  description.  Every  soldier  forgot  his 
past  sufferings;  every  heart  glowed  with  military 
pride,  patriotism,  and  the  glow  of  conquest,  and  all 
burst  into  rapturous  applause.  At  the  height  of  his 
power  Napoleon  cried  out,  "  There's  the  famous  city 
at  last !  "  Then  he  added,  "  And  high  time,  too  ! " 

Nevertheless,  as  if  warned  by  a  secret  voice  of  the 
abyss  that  was  about  to  open  before  him,  the  con- 
queror, with  something  very  unlike  his  usual  audac- 
ity, did  not  at  first  establish  himself  in  Moscow. 
He  merely  entered  a  little  way,  then,  turning  round, 
he  stopped  at  an  inn  in  one  of  the  suburbs  of  the 
city,  Dragomilof,  and  spent  the  night  there.  The 
next  day,  September  15,  since  all  seemed  calm,  he 
conquered  the  presentiments  of  the  previous  evening, 
and  made  a  triumphant  entry  into  the  Moscovite 


14  MARIE   LOUISE. 


capital.  He  had  imagined  that  the  keys  of  the  city 
would  be  respectfully  brought  to  him  by  delegates  of 
the  population,  and  that  he  would  make  a  grand 
entrance  into  Moscow,  as  he  had  already  done  into 
Berlin  and  Vienna,  amid  a  vast  crowd  which  should 
feel  for  him  as  much  admiration  as  awe.  It  was  a 
great  mistake :  the  city  was  deserted,  and  the  soldiers 
were  the  sole  spectators  of  their  own  glory.  The 
footfalls  of  the  cavalry  horses  alone  broke  the  dis- 
turbing and  solemn  silence  of  the  great  city,  which 
seemed  dead.  Five-sixths  of  the  inhabitants  had  dis- 
appeared, and  those  who  remained  had  hidden  them- 
selves. The  streets  and  public  places  were  solitudes. 
Thousands  of  blackbirds,  crows,  and  rooks  were  flut- 
tering about  the  belfries  of  this  strange  city,  which 
wore  a  more  Asiatic  than  European  aspect. 

By  the  side  of  the  stone  bridge  over  the  Moskowa 
stands  the  Kremlin  of  the  Ruricks  and  Romanoffs, 
with  its  staircase  outside,  the  long,  straight  stairway 
called  the  Red  Staircase,  with  the  terrace  running 
along  outside  of  the  Hall  of  the  Czars,  with  its  pal- 
ace of  Peter  I.  to  the  left,  with  the  arsenal  and  two 
huge  bronze  mortars,  and  two  gigantic  cannon  at 
each  side  of  the  main  door, — the  Kremlin  with  the 
church  of  Ivan  the  Great,  the  church  with  its  lofty 
tower,  its  gilt  domes,  and  its  legendary  cross.  Napo- 
leon was  exultant,  and  in  an  outburst  of  pride  he 
said :  "  At  last  I  am  in  Moscow !  I  am  in  the  old 
Palace  of  the  Czars !  I  am  in  the  Kremlin  !  "  And 
he  ascended  to  the  top  of  the  tower  of  Ivan  the 


MOSCOW.  15 


Great,  and  thence  looked  down  haughtily  upon  his 
conquest,  through  which  wound  the  Moskowa.  It 
was  a  solemn  and  mighty  moment,  —  the  culminating 
moment  of  an  incomparable  pyramid  of  glory  and 
colossal  power. 

Let  us  pause  here  a  moment.  In  a  few  moments 
Providence  was  to  give  the  signal  for  this  giant's  fall, 
and  the  death  agony  of  the  immense  empire,  an 
agony  which  was  to  last  two  years,  was  about  to  begin. 
Fire  had  already  broken  out  in  different  parts  of  the 
city,  but  they  were  supposed  to  be  unimportant  acci- 
dents, the  results  of  the  soldiers'  carelessness.  That 
evening  Napoleon  went  to  sleep  in  the  Kremlin,  and 
possibly  dreamed  of  glory  and  greatness.  Certainly 
before  he  closed  his  eyes  he  did  not  foresee  the  ter- 
rible catastrophe  which  was  about  to  break  forth. 
Meanwhile  the  fire  was  spreading  in  every  direction 
before  the  equinoctial  winds ;  they  ran  for  the  fire 
engines,  but  there  were  none,  and  the  truth  became 
clear.  The  governor,  Rostopchin,  had  commanded 
convicts  to  set  fire  to  the  sacred  city  as  if  it  were  the 
meanest  village  on  the  Smolensk  road.  It  was  a 
terrible  sight :  drunken  men  were  running  about 
with  torches,  uttering  horrid  cries ;  savage  women, 
fierce  criminals,  were  hurrying  through  the  flames, 
which  they  fed  with  wood  dipped  in  pitch. 

Napoleon  still  slept,  and  no  one  dared  to  wake  him. 
At  last  the  light  of  the  sun  and  the  fire  aroused  him, 
and  he  rushed  to  the  window,  exclaiming:  "So  that's 
the  way  they  make  war !  The  civilization  of  Peters- 


16  MARIE    LOUISE. 


burg  has  deceived  us.  They  are  nothing  but  Tar- 
tars." 

The  danger  was  ever  growing;  blazing  cinders 
were  falling  upon  the  towv  gunswabs  which  were 
spread  out  on  the  ground  in  front  of  the  Kremlin, 
and  threatened  to  set  them  on  fire.  There  were  four 
hundred  caissons  of  ammunition  in  the  courtyard; 
the  arsenal  was  full  of  powder;  the  Emperor  and 
his  guard  were  sure  to  be  blown  up  if  a  single  one 
of  the  cinders  had  fallen  on  a  single  caisson.  The 
merest  spark  might  change  the  fate  of  the  world :  on 
such  slender  threads  hang  the  fates  of  conquerors 
and  of  empires !  There  was  the  sorest  anguish ;  it 
was  rumored  that  the  Kremlin  was  ruined,  and  that 
Napoleon  and  his  fortune  were  about  to  disappear  in  a 
sea  of  fire.  The  fury  of  the  fire  grew  wilder;  it  roared 
and  surged  like  waves  in  a  storm.  The  incendiaries 
were  shot  wherever  found,  and  their  bodies  were 
thrown  into  the  flames  they  had  themselves  lit.  The 
city  was  a  mere  shell  of  crumbling  ruin  ;  the  air  was 
full  of  smoke  and  ashes.  The  windows  of  the  Krem- 
lin were  melted  and  fell  in  fragments.  His  officers 
ran  to  Napoleon  and  earnestly  addressed  him:  "  Leave, 
Sire,  leave,  we  beseech  you." 

At  first  the  conqueror  refused  to  leave  his  prey, 
but  his  persistence  was  vain :  the  fire  was  stronger. 
Conquered  by  the  conflagration,  he  yielded  and  left 
the  place.  It  was  a  terrible  moment,  prophetic  of 
all  that  destiny  would  compel  him  to  abandon.  He 
hurried  down  the  great  northern  staircase,  famous 


MOSCOW.  17 


for  the  massacre  of  the  Strelitzes,  but  there  he  was 
hemmed  in  by  a  sea  of  flames  which  blocked  every 
exit.  What  was  to  be  done  ?  Napoleon  could  neither 
advance  nor  retreat.  Fortunately  there  was  descried 
a  gate  opening  on  the  Moskowa,  and  through  this 
narrow  passage  the  fugitive  escaped  from  the  Krem- 
lin. But  his  danger  had  only  begun ;  now  he  had 
to  plunge  into  the  city,  which  was  all  a  fiery 
furnace.  A  narrow,  winding  street,  already  afire, 
was  to  be  seen,  and  into  that  the  Emperor  plunged. 
All  about  him  roofs  were  falling,  arches  crumbling, 
beams  crashing  down :  it  was  like  one  of  the  circles 
of  Dante's  Inferno.  A  few  staunch  friends  proposed 
to  the  Emperor  to  cover  him  from  head  to  foot  with 
their  cloaks  and  to  carry  him  to  safety  in  their  arms ; 
he  refused,  and  hastened  on  over  the  glowing  cinders. 
His  gray  overcoat  was  burned  in  many  places ;  his 
hair  was  singed.  At  last,  as  if  by  miracle,  he  made 
his  escape  from  the  accursed  city,  and  that  evening 
he  found  quarters,  a  league  away,  on  the  Saint  Pe- 
tersburg road,  in  the  castle  of  Petrovski,  the  summer- 
house  of  one  of  the  Emperor  Alexander's  chamber- 
lains. 

When  Napoleon  awoke  the  next  day,  September 
17,  he  looked  at  Moscow :  the  horizon  was  all  aglow; 
the  fire,  so  far  from  going  out,  was  burning  with 
redoubled  violence.  He  exclaimed  sadly,  "This 
betokens  great  misfortunes !  "  Yet  he  did  not  lose 
heart;  he  wished  to  defy  fortune  again,  and  with 
greater  audacity.  Since  one  of  Russia's  two  capitals 


18  MARIE    LOUISE. 


was  burned,  he  wished  to  march  on  the  other ;  but 
his  lieutenants  murmured:  "What!  no  rest?  Are 
we  to  march  again  ?  To  push  on  to  the  north  ?  To 
go  to  meet  the  winter,  as  if  it  would  not  come  soon 
enough?"  When  the  Emperor  took  counsel  with 
them,  they  all  dissuaded  him  from  this  course.  One 
day  at  Saint  Helena  he  said,  "If  it  had  been  the 
month  of  August,  we  should  have  marched  on  Saint 
Petersburg."  In  the  middle  of  September  it  was  too 
late. 

The  burning  of  Moscow  lasted  through  the  17th 
and  the  18th;  the  19th  it  slackened;  the  20th  it 
stopped.  Since  the  Kremlin  had  escaped,  Napoleon 
went  back  thither,  imagining  that  his  presence  in  the 
city  of  the  Czars,  even  if  it  were  in  ashes,  would 
augment  his  glory,  and  that  the  Emperor  Alexander 
would  decide  to  sue  for  peace. 

At  the  Kremlin  Napoleon  occupied  a  vast  but 
nearly  unfurnished  apartment ;  he  had  there  his  little 
iron  camp-bed,  which  he  always  carried  with  him  to 
the  castles  in  which  he  slept  in  his  campaigns.  His 
windows  looked  out  on  the  Moskowa.  Being  struck 
by  the  vast  number  of  crows  and  ravens  that  were 
cawing  about,  he  said,  impatiently,  "  Heavens !  are 
these  birds  of  evil  going  to  follow  me  everywhere  ?  " 
He  found  consolation  in  looking  at  the  portrait  of 
the  King  of  Rome,  which  he  had  placed  in  his  bed- 
room. Marshal  Davout  wrote  to  his  wife,  September 
22:  "I  have  seen  the  portrait  of  the  King  of  Rome. 
I  can  say  nothing  about  the  likeness,  for  I  have  never 


MOSCOW.  19 


seen  the  young  Prince,  but  the  painting  seemed  to  me 
admirable.  The  Emperor  seemed  to  examine  the 
portrait  with  a  great  deal  of  pleasure,  with  much 
more,  indeed,  than  one  would  have  thought  possible 
amid  so  many  cares." 

The  Emperor's  court  at  the  Kremlin  consisted  of 
the  principal  officers  of  the  army.  There  were  also 
present  Count  Daru,  Secretary  of  State ;  the  Count  of 
Turenne,  Chamberlain  and  Keeper  of  the  Wardrobe ; 
the  Barons  of  Saluces  and  of  Lambertye,  equerries. 
Couriers  took  eighteen  days  to  come  from  Paris,  and 
there  was  not  a  day  in  which  news  from  France 
failed  to  reach  the  Kremlin.  Besides  the  couriers, 
mail-coaches  plied  between  Paris  and  the  imperial 
headquarters.  Moreover,  every  week  an  auditor  of 
the  Council  of  State  brought  the  work  of  the 
Ministers  and  carried  it  back  to  Paris,  when  it  had 
been  signed  by  the  Emperor.  There  was  also  the 
usual  active  correspondence  with  the  European 
courts. 

Illusions  still  prevailed.  Marshal  Davout,  that 
man  of  iron,  wrote  from  Moscow,  October  10,  to  his 
wife:  "All  the  fatigues  of  the  campaign  have  dis- 
appeared ;  the  faces  of  the  men  are  cheerful ;  their 
bearing  is  excellent.  The  position  of  the  French 
army  is  such  that  if  the  Russians  desire  any  chance 
to  escape  complete  destruction,  they  must  long  for 
peace  and  try  all  means  to  secure  it."  October  4, 
still  maintaining  his  heroic  illusions,  the  Marshal 
wrote  again :  "  All  our  dangers  are  over,  and  I  have 


20  MAEIE   LOUISE. 


no  doubt  that  the  enemy,  if  he  wishes  to  escape  the 
risk  of  total  destruction,  will  open  his  eyes  and  sue 
for  peace.  They  have  burned  a  large  part  of  Mos- 
cow, but  there  are  enough  houses  left  to  quarter  the 
army,  and  enough  supplies  to  feed  it.  The  enemy 
have  ruined  their  empire  for  ages  to  come  by  this 
atrocious  act,  which  will  harm  only  them.  We  have 
repaired  our  losses  and  rested  since  our  arrival  much 
more  fully  than  could  have  been  expected.  Every 
day  we  grow  stronger  in  every  respect." 

The  soldiers  had  found  rich  booty  in  the  cellars 
of  the  houses  that  had  been  burned,  —  wine,  liqueurs, 
clothes,  furs,  —  and  had  recovered  their  usual  gaiety, 
forgetful  of  the  past  and  careless  of  the  future.  A 
company  of  French  comedians,  under  the  direction 
of  an  actress,  Madame  Burray,  was  acting  in  the 
pretty  little  theatre  of  the  PosniakofT  Mansion,  which 
the  flames  had  spared.  The  first  play  given  was  the 
Sports  of  Love  and  Chance.  This  frivolity  presented 
a  curious  contrast  with  events  more  terrible  than  any 
tragedy.  "  There  was  no  cabal,"  says  the  Baron  of 
Bausset,  "  either  in  the  audience,  which  was  composed 
of  soldiers,  or  on  the  stage,  where  there  was  no  odious 
rivalry.  The  pit  was  filled  with  soldiers,  and  the  two 
rows  of  boxes  occupied  by  officers  of  every  branch  of 
the  service.  The  orchestra  was  very  good;  it  con- 
sisted of  the  band  .of  the  Guards.  There  were  eleven 
performances.  Napoleon  was  never  present ;  but  the 
Prefect  of  the  Palace  had  found  another  entertain- 
ment for  the  Emperor.  Among  the  strangers  who 


MOSCOW.  21 


had  remained  in  Moscow  was  an  excellent  tenor, 
named  Tarquinio,  whom  he  had  sing  Italian  airs  in 
the  Kremlin.  It  was  not  a  light  matter,"  adds  M.  de 
Bausset,  "  to  have  been  able,  amid  all  the  ruins  that 
surrounded  us,  to  organize  so  speedily  a  court  con- 
cert and  a  town  theatre." 

Napoleon  also  thought  of  sending  to  Paris  for  the 
company  of  the  Theatre  Frai^ais,  and  he  was  within 
an  ace  of  sending  them  an  order  to  start  from  Paris 
for  Moscow,  for  he  meant  to  pass  the  winter  there ; 
moreover,  every  one  in  Paris,  even  Marie  Louise, 
thought  that  was  his  intention. 

At  the  first  review,  on  the  grand  Place  of  the 
Kremlin,  of  the  regiments  already  decimated,  but 
still,  through  their  ingenuity  and  devotion,  present- 
ing a  martial,  almost  a  faultless  air,  the  Emperor  said 
to  his  aide-de-camp,  "  Well,  my  dear  Narbonne,  what 
do  you  say  about  such  a  fine  army  manoeuvring 
under  such  a  bright  sun?"  "I  say,  Sire,"  was  the 
reply,  "  that  it  is  already  rested  and  can  start  for  its 
winter  quarters  in  Lithuania  or  in  Poland,  and  leave 
to  the  Russians  their  capital  in  the  state  to  which 
they  have  brought  it."  Napoleon  cast  a  long  glance 
at  his  troops,  but  said  nothing. 

He  still  lulled  himself  with  vain  hopes  of  some 
arrangement  with  the  Czar.  He  said  to  a  Russian, 
M.  de  Jakowleff :  "  This  war  is  embittered  by  a  des- 
peration which  is  due  neither  to  Alexander  nor  me. 
Your  Emperor  is  deceived,  and  the  English  are 
inflicting  on  Russia  a  blow  which  will  bleed  for  a 


22  MARIE   LOUISE. 


long  time.  Since  Smolensk  I  have  passed  through 
nothing  but  burning  towns  and  villages.  Your  patri- 
otism is  mere  madness.  Peter  the  Great  himself 
would  call  you  barbarians ;  and  what  would  he  say  if 
he  were  to  breathe  the  ashes  of  Moscow?  Rostopchin's 
madness  costs  you  more  than  ten  battles.  Besides, 
what  has  this  fire  profited  you  ?  Are  there  not  enough 
houses  left  for  my  generals  ?  Do  not  my  soldiers  find 
abundant  stores  in  your  cellars?  But,  once  more, 
I  didn't  come  to  your  capital  to  settle  down  there. 
I  should  have  halted  at  the  gates,  I  should  have 
quartered  my  army  in  the  suburbs,  I  should  have 
declared  Moscow  a  neutral  town,  if  Alexander  had 
said  a  word.  That  word  I  waited  for  several  hours ; 
I  desired  it.  The  slightest  step  would  have  shown 
to  me  that  Alexander  still  felt  in  the  bottom  of  his 
heart  some  trace  of  attachment  to  me.  Then  we 
should  have  promptly  made  peace  without  outside 
interference.  He  would  have  said  to  me,  as  he  did 
at  Tilsit,  that  he  had  been  cruelly  deceived  about 
me,  and  everything  would  have  been  quickly  for- 
gotten. Instead  of  that,  you  see  where  we  are ! 
How  much  blood  has  been  shed,  what  evils  encom- 
pass us,  from  not  understanding  each  other  !  " 

Napoleon's  great  mistake  lay  in  thinking  that  Mos- 
cow was  like  Berlin  and  Vienna.  He  had  counted 
on  a  war  in  accordance  with  the  rules,  and  he  found 
a  savage  war.  He  was  like  a  duellist  who  should 
expect  a  small  sword  and  faces  a  club.  This  is 
expressed  by  Count  Leo  Tolstoi,  in  his  War  and 


MOSCOW.  23 


Peace,  —  a  book  in  which  all  the  passions  of  1812  are 
revived :  "  After  Smolensk,"  he  says,  "  a  war  began 
to  which  none  of  the  usual  traditions  could  be  ap- 
plied. The  burning  of  the  towns  and  villages,  the 
retreating  after  the  battles,  the  continual  attack  of 
marauders,  the  guerilla  warfare,  were  all  outside  of 
the  usual  rules.  Napoleon,  who  halted  at  Moscow 
in  the  correct  attitude  of  a  duellist,  felt  this  more 
than  any  one,  and  he  never  ceased  blaming  Kutusoff 
and  the  Emperor  Alexander ;  but  in  spite  of  his  com- 
plaints and  the  mortification  of  certain  high  person- 
ages at  seeing  the  country  fight  in  this  way,  the 
national  club  arose  in  a  threatening  fashion,  and 
without  troubling  itself  about  the  good  taste  or  the 
rules,  smote  and  crushed  the  French,  until  by  sheer 
dint  of  brutal  and  ponderous  strength  it  had  com- 
pletely repulsed  the  invasion ! "  And  the  Russian 
nobleman,  excited  by  the  memory  of  this  patriotic 
hatred,  adds :  "  Happy  the  people  who,  instead  of 
offering  the  handle  of  their  sword  to  the  generous 
victor,  grasp  the  first  club  within  reach,  without  stop- 
ping to  think  of  what  others  would  do  in  the  same  case, 
and  who  do  not  lay  it  down  before  wrath  and  ven- 
geance have  given  place  in  their  hearts  to  contempt 
and  pity ! " 

Napoleon  kept  waiting  for  a  message  of  peace,  but 
no  message  came.  "  What  shall  I  do  ?  "  he  asked  of 
Count  Daru.  "Stay  here,"  replied  the  faithful  offi- 
cer; "turn  Moscow  into  an  entrenched  camp  and 
spend  the  winter  here."  "That  is  bold  advice," 


24  MARIE    LOUISE. 


resumed  the  Emperor.  "  But  what  would  they  say 
at  Paris  ?  France  would  not  become  accustomed  to 
my  absence,  and  Prussia  and  Austria  would  take 
advantage  of  it."  Was  it  indeed  possible  to  remain 
motionless  for  six  months  two  hundred  leagues  from 
Wilna,  three  hundred  from  Dantzic,  seven  hundred 
from  Paris,  with  the  prospect  of  being  hemmed  in, 
not  merely  by  the  snows  of  winter,  but  by  all  the 
forces  of  Russia  ? 

His  genius,  once  so  swift  in  forming  plans  and  so 
audacious  in  carrying  them  out,  was  no  longer  itself ; 
he  hesitated,  fumbled,  changed  his  mind.  At  one 
moment  he  decided  to  push  on,  then  to  remain  sta- 
tionary, then  to  retreat.  He  was  no  longer  the  man 
whose  slightest  word  seemed  the  decree  of  fate ;  he 
ceased  to  be  the  all-powerful  master  who  had  made 
fortune  his  slave.  How  often  he  had  blundered! 
No  one  of  his  courtiers  could  again  call  him  infallible. 
He  had  made  a  mistake  in  venturing  into  the  north 
before  he  had  completed  the  subjection  of  Spain ;  in 
failing  to  secure,  before  starting,  an  alliance  with 
Sweden  and  Turkey;  in  beginning  the  war  too 
early,  in  view  of  the  political  conditions,  too  late,  in 
view  of  the  time  of  year ;  in  not  following  his  victory 
on  the  Moskowa,  and  in  yielding  to  an  excess  of  pru- 
dence after  an  excess  of  rashness  ;  and  in  prolonging 
a  fatal  delay  at  Moscow.  "  Don't  I  know,"  he  said, 
"that  Moscow  has  no  military  value?  Moscow  is 
not  a  military  position ;  it  is  only  a  political  position. 
I  am  thought  to  be  a  general  there,  when  in  fact  I  am 


MOSCOW.  25 


an  emperor."  Then  he  went  on  to  say  that  a  sov- 
ereign ought  never  to  acknowledge  a  fault;  that  he 
would  thereby  only  lose  reputation  and  glory;  that 
he  should  push  on,  and  his  persistency  would  insure 
success.  His  common-sense  told  him  that  he  ought 
to  have  known  that  the  terrible  winter  would  not 
await  his  permission  to  fall  upon  him;  that  all  his 
guns,  were  they  as  numerous  as  the  waves  of  the  sea 
or  the  stars  in  the  sky,  would  be  of  no  avail  against 
the  storms  and  the  snowdrifts :  Napoleon  knew  all 
this,  but  to  withdraw,  to  retreat,  would  be  to  lose 
his  reputation  as  an  infallible  and  invincible  man. 
What  would  France,  what  would  England  say? 
What  would  be  the  verdict  of  posterity?  Time 
slipped  by,  and  the  bright  autumn  weather  only 
nourished  his  illusions. 

The  Emperor,  held  fast  in  the  Kremlin  by  an  irre- 
sistible force,  became  more  and  more  undecided.  Gen- 
eral de  Sdgur  describes  him  as  he  was  at  that  time, 
languid,  sitting  long  over  his  meals,  which  formerly 
were  simple  and  brief,  lying  down  for  hours  at  a  time, 
and,  novel  in  hand,  waiting  for  the  conclusion  of  his 
own  terrible  career.  "  Having  reached  the  height  of 
his  glory,  he  doubtless  foresaw  that  this  first  step 
backward  would  be  the  signal  of  its  decay  ;  hence  he 
remained  motionless,  lingering  yet  for  a  few  moments 
upon  this  summit."  He  would  not  own  it  to  himself, 
that,  like  an  aeronaut  who  has  risen  to  too  great  a 
height,  he  had  to  descend  or  die.  What  was  his 
employment  during  the  last  hours  of  his  stay  in  the 


26  MARIE   LOUISE. 


City  of  the  Czars?  He  discussed  the  merit  of  the 
new  verses  he  had  received  from  Paris,  and  spent 
three  evenings  in  drawing  up  the  regulations  of  the 
Comedie  Franchise.  In  the  morning  of  October  15, 
he  took  a  puerile  pleasure  in  dating  this  decree  from 
Moscow.  That  evening,  in  the  drawing-room  which 
he  occupied  at  the  Kremlin,  just  beneath  the  Czarina's 
apartments,  when  the  candles  were  lit,  and  a  huge  fire 
was  blazing  in  the  fireplace  adorned  with  marble  and 
gold,  he  spoke  with  satisfaction  of  the  decree  that  he 
had  that  morning  signed,  in  order  to  get  in  this  friv- 
olous distraction  some  relief  from  the  secret  anguish 
which  rent  his  soul  without  betraying  itself  upon  his 
face.  Then  he  strode  up  and  down  the  room,  talking 
freely  about  art,  literature,  Corneille,  and  Talma. 

Nevertheless,  time  pressed.  October  13,  there  fell 
a  slight  frost,  without  in  the  least  disturbing  the  fine 
weather,  indicating  to  all  that  the  time  had  come  for 
a  final  decision :  if  Moscow  was  to  be  abandoned,  there 
was  not  a  moment  to  lose.  October  18,  a  beautiful 
morning,  just  when  the  Emperor  was  reviewing  Mar- 
shal Ney's  corps,  the  sound  of  cannon  was  heard  in 
the  direction  of  the  outpost  of  the  King  of  Naples ; 
the  Russians  had  resumed  hostilities  without  even 
proclaiming  a  truce.  There  could  no  longer  be  any 
question  of  negotiations  for  peace.  Napoleon  hesi- 
tated no  longer.  Moscow  was  to  be  abandoned  the 
next  day. 

The  illusions  prevailed  up  to  the  last  moment. 
October  17,  two  days  before  the  retreat  began,  Mar- 


MOSCOW.  27 


shal  Davout  wrote  to  his  wife  :  "  The  Emperor  has 
never  made  a  finer  campaign.  In  three  months  he 
has  conquered  the  enemy's  capital,  and  defeated  the 
large  armies  which  they  cannot  form  anew.  It  was 
high  time  to  make  this  campaign  ;  the  preparations 
of  the  Russians  were  very  formidable,  and  if  we  had 
not  met  them  when  we  did,  they  might  have  had 
great  advantages.  Now  they  have  only  cavalry  left : 
their  infantry  amounts  to  nothing;  for  an  ignorant, 
untrained  militia  cannot  be  counted.  Whatever  may 
be  the  hostile  spirit  of  the  government  and  the  influence 
of  the  English,  it  is  probable  that  in  a  few  months, 
when  their  fervor  is  exhausted,  they  will  become  con- 
scious of  their  misfortunes,  and  will  be  anxious  for 
peace  as  the  sole  means  of  safety." 

Before  leaving,  Napoleon  desired  to  carry  away, 
as  a  memorial  of  his  brief  conquest,  the  huge  golden 
cross  surmounting  the  steeple  of  Saint  Ivan  the  Great. 
He  meant  to  place  it  above  the  dome  of  the  Invalides 
in  Paris.  But  it  was  not  easy  to  detach  it  from  the 
Russian  monument;  and  while  the  workmen  were 
busy  at  this  work  of  destruction,  amid  the  cawing  of 
innumerable  crows,  Napoleon  exclaimed,  "  Doesn't  it 
seem  as  if  these  crows  were  defending  the  cross  ?  " 

October  19,  Moscow  was  full  of  movement  from 
early  dawn;  the  hour  of  departure  had  struck.  It 
was  an  exodus  like  those  in  ancient  times  when 
whole  nations  were  emigrating.  The  files  were  inter- 
minable ;  there  were  a  hundred  thousand  soldiers ; 
besides  them,  forty  thousand  men  and  women  of  all 


28  MARIE    LOUISE. 


ages;  numberless  vehicles  of  every  sort  followed; 
handsome  barouches,  heavy  carts,  heavily  loaded  am- 
munition wagons,  wheelbarrows  laden  with  booty, 
more  than  five  hundred  and  fifty  cannon,  two  thou- 
sand artillery  wagons :  the  men  were  sturdy  and 
healthy,  the  women  anxious,  the  horses  lean  and  ex- 
hausted. Every  language  was  spoken  in  this  motley 
cohort ;  there  were  countless  trophies  won  from  the 
enemy,  —  Russian,  Persian,  and  Turkish  flags,  and  the 
huge  cross,  the  cross  of  Saint  Ivan,  so  heavy  that  it 
had  to  be  abandoned  on  the  way,  as  a  cumbersome 
burden.  Was  it  an  army  or  a  vast  caravan,  this 
strange  medley  of  the  most  dissimilar  things  ?  In 
the  broad  avenue  of  Kalouga,  by  which  they  left 
Moscow,  eight  wagons  drove  abreast ;  and  though  this 
vast  mass  was  not  interrupted  for  a  moment,  the 
exodus  which  began  in  the  early  morning  had  not 
ended  by  evening.  A  bright  sun,  in  a  cloudless  sky, 
lit  up  the  first  day  of  this  retreat,  the  most  lamenta- 
ble known  to  history;  and  when  they  reached  the 
Mountain  of  the  Salute  which,  a  few  weeks  before, 
they  had  ascended  with  so  much  joy,  the  fugitives 
turned  a  last  look  upon  Moscow  and  its  ruins. 


III. 

MALET'S  CONSPIRACY. 

"T7WER  since  the  month  of  October,  uneasiness 
i  'J  had  begun  to  spread  in  France ;  contradictory 
rumors  were  in  circulation.  Some  said  that  the  Em- 
peror had  met  with  serious  disasters ;  others  that,  not 
content  with  conquering  Russia,  he  designed  to  con- 
quer India.  It  was  generally  expected  that  he  would 
spend  the  winter  at  Moscow,  and  this  prospect  did 
not  inspire  confidence.  Although  he  announced  a 
victory,  that  of  the  Moskowa,  the  18th  bulletin  of 
the  Grand  Army,  which  was  printed  in  the  Moniteur 
of  September  27,  produced  a  gloomy  impression.  It 
was  felt  that  it  was  not  one  of  those  decisive  battles, 
like  Austerlitz,  Jena,  or  Wagram,  which  terminate  a 
war  by  a  crushing  blow. 

From  the  Imperial  headquarters  at  Mojaisk,  Sep- 
tember 10,  1812,  Napoleon  had  addressed  to  the  arch- 
bishops and  bishops  of  his  empire  a  circular  letter,  in 
which  he  said:  "The  passage  of  the  Niemen  and 
the  Dnieper;  the  battles  of  Mohilof,  Potolsk,  Os- 
trono,  Smolensk,  and  finally  the  battle  of  the  Mos- 
kowa, all  call  upon  us  to  render  thanks  to  the  God  of 

29 


30  MARIE   LOUISE. 


our  armies.  It  is  hence  our  desire  that,  on  receipt 
of  these  presents,  you  make  arrangements  with  the 
proper  persons.  Collect  my  people  in  the  churches 
to  offer  their  prayers  in  conformity  with  the  rites 
and  ceremonies  of  the  Church  in  such  circumstances. 
This  letter  being  intended  only  for  this  purpose,  I 
pray  God  to  hold  you  in  his  keeping."  In  the  Moni- 
teur  we  read:  " To-day,  Sunday,  October  4,  1812, 
Her  Majesty  the  Empress  and  Queen  went  to  the 
Palace  of  the  Tuileries;  she  heard  mass  in  the 
chapel,  and  was  present  at  the  Te  Deum  sung  in 
honor  of  the  victories  of  His  Majesty  the  Emperor 
and  King.  After  the  mass  there  was  a  reception. 
After  the  reception  Her  Majesty  returned  to  the 
Palace  of  Saint  Cloud.  A  Te  Deum  was  sung  the 
same  day  in  the  cathedral." 

In  spite  of  this  commanded  thanksgiving,  much 
uneasiness  prevailed.  The  continuance  of  this  vast 
war,  to  which  no  end  could  be  seen,  excited  ^general 
alarm.  Every  one  said  it  was  to  be  a  second  edition 
of  the  Spanish  war.  Banking,  commerce,  and  indus- 
try were  suffering  severely.  Many  families  were 
already  in  mourning.  "  In  Paris,"  says  the  Duke  of 
Rovigo,  in  his  Memoirs,  "every  one  had  a  map  of 
Russia,  in  which  were  stuck  pins  at  all  the  places 
mentioned  in  the  bulletins.  Everywhere  informa- 
tion was  anxiously  sought  about  an  army  in  which 
every  one  had  a  brother,  a  son,  or  a  friend." 

The  burning  of  Moscow  produced  a  general  feel- 
ing of  alarm;  the  confident  calmness  of  the  official 


MALET^S    CONSPIRACY.  31 

language  satisfied  no  one.  The  22d  bulletin  of  the 
Grand  Army,  dated  September  27,  and  published  in 
the  Moniteur  of  October  14,  was  yet  noteworthy  for 
its  tone  of  calm  and  optimism.  "  Consul-General  Les- 
seps,"  it  said,  "  has  been  appointed  superintendent  of 
the  province  of  Moscow.  He  has  organized  a  city 
council  and  many  committees,  all  composed  of  the 
inhabitants.  The  fires  are  completely  extinguished. 
Every  day  there  are  discovered  stores  of  sugar,  skins, 
and  clothes.  The  enemy's  army  appears  to  be  retir- 
ing on  Kalouga  and  Tula.  Tula  contains  the  largest 
manufactory  of  arms  in  Russia.  Our  advance  guard 
is  on  the  Pakra.  The  Emperor  is  quartered  in  the 
Imperial  Palace  of  the  Kremlin.  In  the  Kremlin 
there  have  been  discovered  many  ornaments  used  for 
the  coronation  of  the  Emperors,  and  all  the  flags  cap- 
tured from  the  Turks  in  the  last  hundred  years. 
The  weather  is  like  that  of  the  end  of  October  in 
Paris.  It  rains  a  little,  and  there  are  occasional  white 
frosts.  It  is  asserted  that  the  Moskowa,  and  the 
rivers  of  the  country,  do  not  freeze  before  the  mid- 
dle of  November.  The  greater  part  of  the  army  is 
cantoned  at  Moscow  and  is  resting  from  its  fatigues." 
Judging  from  his  bulletins,  Napoleon  was  as  tran- 
quil and  happy  in  the  Palace  of  the  Czars  as  in  his  Im- 
perial country  places  of  Saint  Cloud,  Compiegne,  or 
Fontainebleau,  and  one  would  have  said  that  the  win- 
ter was  never  coming.  But  the  auditors  of  the  Council 
of  State  who  returned  to  Paris  from  Moscow  with  the 
portfolio,  who  had  seen  the  terrible  ravages  of  the 


32  MAKIE    LOUISE. 


fire,  who  knew  the  enormous  losses  which  the  army 
had  already  suffered,  and  had  seen  the  Emperor's 
embarrassment  and  indecision,  were  only  too  fearful 
of  the  approaching  disasters,  and  their  alarm  spread 
rapidly  in  official  circles  and  in  the  Parisian  drawing- 
rooms,  though  everywhere  else  perfect  peace  prevailed. 
The  capital  and  the  provinces  uttered  no  murmur. 
Napoleon,  at  a  distance  of  seven  hundred  leagues 
from  his  empire,  was  feared  and  obeyed  as  if  he  had 
been  on  the  spot,  and  the  numberless  wheels  of  the 
government  turned  with  perfect  regularity. 

Marie  Louise  was  living  in  perfect  quiet  in  the 
Palace  of  Saint  Cloud,  when,  in  the  night  of  October 
22,  there  broke  out  the  most  unexpected  and  strange 
conspiracy.  There  happened  to  be  at  that  time  in  a 
private  hospital  in  Paris,  kept  by  Dr.  Dubuisson,  in 
a  house  to  the  left  of  the  Faubourg  Saint  Antoine, 
near  the  Barrier e  du  Tixhie,  a  former  general  of 
Moreau's  army,  who  passed  for  a  fanatical  Republi- 
can, and  in  1807  had  been  accused  of  secret  plot- 
ting against  the  Emperor ;  but  being  regarded  rather 
as  a  lunatic  than  as  a  real  conspirator,  he  had  at  first 
been  confined  in  the  Conciergerie,  but  afterwards  had 
been  transferred  to  a  private  hospital.  His  name  was 
Charles  Francois  de  Malet,  and  he  was  born  at  D61e, 
June  28,  1754.  In  spite  of  his  reputation  as  an 
ardent  Republican,  he  was  descended,  on  both  his 
father's  and  his  mother's  side,  from  the  old  nobility 
of  Franche  Comte,  and  under  the  old  regime  he 
had  served  among  the  musketeers  in  the  King's 


MALET'S    CONSPIRACY.  33 

household.  His  attitude  as  a  prisoner  was  not  stoi- 
cal. He  had  written,  July  3,  1810,  to  the  Duke  of 
Rovigo,  Minister  of  Police :  "  My  Lord,  I  am  detained 
for  having  repeated  a  few  possibly  indiscreet,  but  yet 
in  no  way  really  reprehensible  remarks,  which  became 
serious  only  through  the  perfidious  way  in  which 
they  were  interpreted.  The  first  ground  which  I 
bring  forward,  in  trying  to  persuade  Your  Excellency 
to  put  an  end  to  a  long  and  undeserved  detention,  is 
the  zeal  and  devotion  which  I  have  at  all  times  shown 
in  His  Majesty's  service,  as  is  set  forth  in  a  memorial 
wherein,  without  mention  of  my  former  service,  I 
speak  only  of  those  I  have  rendered  to  His  Majesty 
since  the  establishment  of  the  Empire."  Thus  the 
pretended  Brutus  bowed  before  the  Caesar,  but  hated 
him  all  the  while.  He  was  convinced  that  the  Impe- 
rial Colossus  had  feet  of  clay,  and  in  the  month  of 
October  he  thought  the  time  ripe  for  carrying  out 
the  fantastic  plan  which  had  haunted  him  for  many 
years.  The  means  that  he  devised  at  the  first  glance 
seem  childish,  and  it  is  surprising  that  they  could 
have  succeeded  for  even  an  hour. 

To  pretend  that  the  Emperor  had  died  in  Russia 
October  8;  to  make  this  falsehood  the  keynote  of 
the  conspiracy ;  to  invent  an  alleged  report  of  an 
alleged  extraordinary  session,  pretended  to  have  been 
held  in  the  evening  of  October  22  ;  to  invent  likewise 
a  decree  of  the  Senate  abolishing  the  Imperial  gov- 
ernment, appointing  a  provisional  government,  and 
setting  General  Malet  at  the  head  of  the  Post  of 


34  MARIE    LOUISE. 


Paris  of  the  first  military  division ;  to  escape  secretly 
from  Dr.  Dubuisson's  private  hospital;  to  have  two 
silent  companions,  one  disguised  as  an  aide-de-camp, 
the  other  as  Commissary  of  Police;  to  go  to  the  Pop- 
incourt  barracks  ;  there  to  read  the  false  decree  to  the 
commander  of  the  10th  cohort ;  by  means  of  forged 
orders  to  take  this  band  as  an  armed  force ;  to  go  to 
the  Prison  de  la  Force  and  set  free  Generals  Lahorie 
and  Guidal,  who  were  confined  there  for  political  rea- 
sons, to  make  them  his  accomplices,  without  saying 
anything  to  them  about  it  before  they  were  set  free, 
and  then  with  the  aid  of  the  10th  cohort  to  proceed 
to  arrest  the  Duke  of  Rovigo,  Minister  of  Police,  the 
Duke  of  Feltre,  Minister  of  War,  M.  Pasquier,  Prefect 
of  Police,  General  Hulin,  Commander  of  the  Post  of 
Paris;  to  have  prepared  at  the  H6tel  de  Ville  the 
quarters  destined  for  the  provisional  government ;  to 
do  all  this  in  the  night  between  the  22d  and  the  23d 
of  October,  and  in  the  morning  of  the  23d  to  proclaim 
the  Revolution,  —  such  was  the  outline  of  the  plot. 

At  first  General  Malet  took  into  his  confidence 
only  three  persons,  —  a  Royalist  abbe*,  named  Lafon, 
who  was  in  the  private  hospital  with  him,  and  helped 
him  prepare  the  forged  orders ;  and  two  young  men, 
Rateau,  a  corporal  of  the  Guard  of  Paris,  and  Bon- 
treux,  a  law  student :  the  first  was  to  take  the  part 
of  the  aide ;  the  other,  that  of  Commissary  of  Police. 
October  22,  1812,  at  about  ten  in  the  evening,  the 
general  made  his  escape  from  Dr.  Dubuisson's  house 
and  went  to  the  rooms  of  a  Spanish  priest,  in  the 


MALETS    CONSPIRACY.  35 

Place  Royale,  to  put  on  his  uniform,  which  he  had 
instructed  his  wife  to  send  thither.  Here  he  found 
the  two  young  men,  who  dressed  themselves  for  the 
part  they  had  to  play.  It  was  raining  in  torrents, 
and  to  pass  the  time  they  ate  a  supper  and  brewed  a 
punch.  It  was  half-past  three  in  the  morning  when 
the  general  and  his  two  acolytes  began  their  expe- 
dition. They  went  first  to  the  Popincourt  barracks 
where  the  10th  cohort  was  quartered.  No  one  was 
allowed  to  enter  the  barracks  at  night;  so  Malet  pre- 
tended that  he  wanted  to  see  only  Colonel  Soulier,  in 
command  of  the  10th  cohort.  He  was  conducted 
to  the  colonel's  quarters,  which  were  outside  of  the 
barracks.  He  had  him  waked  up,  and  pretending 
that  he  was  not  General  Malet,  but  General  Lamotte, 
—  for  this  whole  affair  was  one  mass  of  lies, — he  said 
to  the  commander  of  the  10th  cohort,  "I  see  that  you 
have  not  heard  the  news ;  we  have  had  the  misfor- 
tune to  lose  our  Emperor."  On  hearing  this,  Colonel 
Soulier,  a  good  and  brave  man,  though  of  a  credulous 
nature,  burst  into  tears.  "  The  government  has  been 
changed,"  went  on  the  pseudo-General  Lamotte,  "  and 
here  is  an  order  which  General  Malet  gave  me  to 
hand  to  you  a  moment  ago."  This  order  commanded 
that  the  cohort  should  fall  into  line,  ready  for  action  ; 
that  it  should  be  informed  of  the  state  of  affairs,  and 
be  placed  under  the  orders  of  the  alleged  General 
Lamotte. 

The  colonel  obeyed  without  questioning ;  he  called 
out  his  men,  and  had  read  to  them  the  forged  decree 


MARIE   LOUISE. 


of  the  Senate,  and  they  marched  out,  twelve  hundred 
men  strong,  under  the  command  of  Malet,  who  called 
himself  General  Larnotte.  Only  one  company  remained 
in  the  barracks.  It  was  to  accompany  Colonel  Sou- 
lier  to  the  H6tel  de  Ville,  to  prepare  the  rooms 
destined  for  the  provisional  government.  The 
colonel  was  moreover  promoted  to  the  post  of  briga- 
dier-general, and  received  an  order  on  the  Treasury 
for  one  hundred  thousand  francs. 

Malet  was  delighted  with  the  success  of  his  first 
step.  The  second  was  to  go  to  the  Prison  de  la 
Force  to  set  free  Generals  Guidal  and  Lahorie,  and 
to  get  them  to  join  in  his  undertaking,  of  which  they 
had  not  yet  heard  a  word.  He  passed  through  the 
rue  Saint  Antoine  at  the  head  of  the  10th  cohort, 
and  when  he  reached  the  prison,  he  had  the  doors 
opened  without  difficulty,  embraced  the  two  generals, 
announced  to  them  the  Emperor's  death,  and  told 
them  what  they  would  have  to  do.  "  There  is  not  a 
moment  to  be  lost,"  he  said  to  them.  "Here  are 
your  instructions  :  take  these  troops  and  carry  them 
out.  I  need  only  a  half-company  to  seize  the  gov- 
ernment. Then  we  shall  meet  at  the  H6tel  de 
Ville."  General  Lahorie  was  charged  with  the 
arrest  of  the  Prefect  of  Police ;  he  was,  besides,  with 
the  aid  of  General  Guidal,  to  proceed  to  arrest  the 
Ministers  of  War  and  of  Police.  As  for  General 
Malet,  he  reserved  for  himself  the  most  difficult  task, 
—  the  arrest  of  the  Commander  of  Paris,  General 
Hulin. 


MALET'S    CONSPIRACY.  37 

Everything  passed  in  accordance  with  the  con- 
spirators' wishes.  M.  Pasquier,  the  Prefect  of  Police, 
was  a  gentle  and  inoffensive  man  ;  he  had  already 
got  up  and  was  at  work  in  his  office  when  they  came 
to  arrest  him,  and  he  submitted  to  his  arrest  with  the 
best  grace  in  the  world,  got  into  the  cab,  and  was 
driven  to  the  Prison  de  la  Force  together  with  his 
first  assistant.  Savary,  the  Duke  of  Rovigo,  Minister 
of  Police,  made  a  little  more  resistance,  but  seeing 
that  his  life  was  threatened,  he  yielded.  He  de- 
scribes his  arrest  in  his  curious  Memoirs.  General 
Lahorie,  formerly  chief  of  staff  of  the  Army  of  the 
Rhine,  had  been  his  comrade  in  the  first  Revolution- 
ary campaigns,  and  knew  him  intimately.  "  You  are 
under  arrest,"  Lahorie  said  to  him ;  "  congratulate 
yourself  on  falling  into  my  hands;  no  harm  shall 
come  to  you."  Savary  did  not  understand.  Lahorie 
went  on,  "  The  Emperor  was  killed,  October  8, 
under  the  walls  of  Moscow."  "  What  stuff  you  are 
talking!  "  answered  the  Duke  of  Rovigo.  "  I  have  a 
letter  from  him  of  that  very  day.  I  can  show  it  to 
you."  A  few  moments  later,  General  Guidal  came 
in,  sword  in  hand,  and  he  placed  the  point  on 
Savary's  breast,  who  exclaimed,  "  Have  you  come 
here  to  disgrace  yourself  by  a  cowardly  assassina- 
tion ?  "  "  No,"  replied  Guidal ;  "  I  am  not  going  to 
kill  you,  but  you  must  come  with  me."  "  Very  well ! 
yes;  but  let  me  put  on  my  clothes."  "I'll  have 
them  brought  here."  Savary,  who  before  General 
Guidal  came,  had  tried  in  vain  to  undeceive  the 


38  MARIE   LOUISE. 


soldiers,  dressed  as  slowly  as  possible,  in  order  to  gain 
time.  Then  he  was  driven  in  a  cab  with  Guidal  to 
the  Prison  de  la  Force,  accompanied  by  a  few  soldiers 
of  the  10th  cohort. 

On  the  way,  as  he  was  passing  along  the  Quai  des 
Lunettes,  an  idea  occurred  to  him :  he  devised  a  way 
of  escaping ;  he  quietly  opened  the  carriage  door, 
and  when  he  got  near  the  clock-tower,  he  sprang  out 
and  ran  towards  the  Palais  de  Justice.  But  he  was 
at  once  pursued  with  cries  of  "  Stop  him !  stop  him !  " 
and  soon  caught.  He  was  brought  back  to  the  car- 
riage, and  a  few  minutes  later  was  behind  lock  and 
key  in  the  Prison  de  la  Force. 

At  the  Prefecture  of  the  Seine,  that  is  to  say,  at 
the  H6tel  de  Ville,  everything  proceeded  as  smoothly 
as  General  Malet  could  have  wished.  Count  Frochot, 
Prefect  of  the  Seine,  had  spent  the  night  in  the  coun- 
try, and  was  not  to  return  to  Paris  till  the  morning. 
He  was  not  at  the  H6tel  de  Ville  when  Colonel 
Soulier  arrived  there  at  the  head  of  a  part  of  the 
10th  cohort  and  announced  the  Emperor's  death,  and 
that  he  was  going  to  take  possession  of  the  rooms 
destined  for  the  provisional  government.  An  official 
of  the  Prefecture  was  at  once  sent  off  for  the  Prefect. 
The  bearer  of  this  message  met  him  in  the  rue  du 
Faubourg  Saint  Antoine  on  his  way  to  Paris,  uncon- 
scious of  what  was  going  on,  and  handed  the  note 
inviting  him  to  come  as  soon  as  possible,  and  ending 
with  these  words,  " Fuit  imperator"  As  soon  as  he 
reached  the  H6tel  de  Ville,  he  found  Colonel  Soulier 


MALET' S    CONSPIRACY.  39 

there,  and  was  shown  the  forged  orders.  Resistance 
seemed  impossible,  and  making  no  objection,  he  had 
the  rooms  prepared  for  the  meeting  of  the  provisional 
government. 

In  three  points,  then,  —  the  Ministry  of  Police, 
the  Prefecture  of  Police,  and  the  Prefecture  of  the 
Seine,  —  General  Malet's  plan  had  been  perfectly  suc- 
cessful. The  delay  in  the  Duke  of  Rovigo's  arrest 
made  a  delay  which  prevented  that  of  the  Minister  of 
War.  It  was  in  the  Place  Venddme,  the  staff-office  of 
the  Post  of  Paris,  that  the  conspiracy  fell  to  pieces. 
Malet  went  there  himself  with  a  detachment  of  the 
10th  cohort.  He  broke  into  the  room  where  General 
Hulin  and  his  wife  were  sleeping,  bade  him  get  up, 
and  said  to  him,  "  I  have  come  to  bring  you  sad  news ; 
the  Emperor  is  dead.  A  decree  of  the  Senate,  dated 
yesterday,  has  abolished  the  Imperial  government, 
and  I  have  been  ordered  to  take  your  place.  I  have 
an  even  more  painful  duty  to  perform :  it  is  to  place 
you  temporarily  under  arrest."  Then  a  voice  issued 
from  the  alcove;  it  was  that  of  Madame  Hulin. 
"  But,  my  dear,"  she  said,  "  if  this  gentleman  is  to 
take  your  place,  he  must  have  some  orders  to  show 
you."  "  True,"  exclaimed  General  Hulin  ;  "  where 
are  your  orders,  sir  ?  "  "  My  orders  ?  "  replied  Malet ; 
"  here  they  are  ! "  and  with  his  pistol  he  shot  down 
Hulin,  breaking  his  jawbone.  Then  he  quietly 
descended  the  staircase  and  proceeded  towards  the 
door  of  the  neighboring  house,  which  was  occupied  by 
the  staff;  there  he  found  Adjutant-General  Doucet, 


40  MARIE    LOUISE. 


Commander  Laborde,  and  a  police  inspector.  This 
last  recognized  him,  and  said,  "  M.  Malet,  you  have 
no  permission  to  leave  your  house  unless  I  go  for 
you."  Then  turning  to  Adjutant-General  Doucet, 
he  added,  "  There's  some  mischief  up ;  arrest  him  at 
once ;  I  will  go  to  the  Ministry  to  see  what  this  thing 
means."  Malet  was  standing  against  the  fireplace; 
seeing  that  the  game  was  up,  he  seized  a  pistol  which 
he  had  in  his  coat  pocket,  to  blow  out  Doucet's  brains ; 
but  this  officer  had  seen  the  motion  in  the  looking- 
glass,  and  suddenly  sprang  on  the  bold  conspirator, 
escaping  the  shot.  At  the  same  moment  Commander 
Laborde  grasped  him  about  the  waist,  shouting,  "To 
arms  !  "  Malet  was  flung  to  the  ground  and  bound 
hand  and  foot.  In  this  condition  he  was  carried  to 
the  balcony,  from  which  Colonel  Doucet  called  out 
to  the  soldiers  of  the  10th  cohort,  that  they  had  been 
deceived  by  an  impostor.  The  conspiracy  was  over. 
By  noon  everything  went  on  as  usual ;  the  Ihike  of 
Rovigo  had  established  himself  again  in  his  ministry, 
and  M.  Pasquier  had  returned  to  the  Prefecture  of 
Police.  The  preparations  at  the  H6tel  de  Ville  for 
the  alleged  provisional  government  vanished  in  the 
twinkling  of  an  eye.  It  all  seemed  like  a  dream. 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  how  General  Malet  pro- 
posed to  treat  the  Empress.  In  an  order  which  was 
not  carried  out,  he  had  commanded  General  Deriot, 
Chief  of  Staff  and  Commander  of  the  Stores  of  the 
National  Guard,  to  occupy  at  once  Sevres,  Ville 
d'Avray,  and  Saint  Cloud ;  the  intention  was  to  pro- 


MALET'S    CONSPIRACY.  41 

vide  for  the  Empress's  safety.  The  order  contained 
these  words :  "  We  have  become  responsible  to  the 
whole  nation  for  the  life  of  Marie  Louise,  both  for 
the  national  honor  and  for  the  guarantee  she  gives  us, 
so  long  as  she  is  in  our  power,  as  to  the  conduct  of 
the  Emperor  of  Austria  towards  France.  As  soon  as 
you  shall  have  completed  your  arrangements,  you 
will  do  well  to  go  to  Saint  Cloud,  to  reassure  this 
Princess  with  regard  to  the  condition  of  things,  until 
the  government  shall  have  done  this  through  the 
regular  channels  of  diplomacy." 

As  soon  as  the  conspirators  had  been  arrested,  the 
Minister  despatched  the  Horse  Guards  to  Saint  Cloud. 
They  reached  there  on  a  gallop,  and  made  a  great 
clatter  in  the  palace  courtyard.  Marie  Louise  was 
much  surprised  by  this  unexpected  disturbance,  and 
ran  out  on  the  balcony  in  her  dressing-gown,  with 
her  hair  flying.  She  had  a  moment  of  alarm,  at 
least  for  her  son  if  not  for  herself,  and  ordering 
under  arms  the  infantry  in  the  palace,  commanded 
preparations  for  defence.  Shortly  word  came  from 
Paris  that  order  was  completely  restored,  and  that 
there  was  absolutely  no  occasion  for  fear.  Never- 
theless, the  affair  left  a  painful  impression  on  the 
Empress's  mind ;  for  she  was  already  able  to  see  the 
future  treachery  of  her  husband's  officers. 

The  next  day,  October  24,  1812,  the  Parisians  read 
in  the  Moniteur  this  statement,  which  was  placarded 
on  the  walls  of  the  Capitol :  "  Three  ex-generals, 
Malet,  Lahorie,  and  Guidal,  deceived  the  National 


42  MARIE   LOUISE. 


Guards  and  led  them  against  the  Minister  of  Police, 
the  Prefect  of  Police,  and  the  Commander  of  the  post 
of  Paris,  against  whom  they  used  violence.  They  dis- 
seminated the  report  of  the  Emperor's  death.  These 
ex-generals  have  been  arrested ;  they  are  convicted 
of  imposture ;  they  will  be  brought  to  justice.  Per- 
fect calm  reigns  in  Paris ;  there  was  no  disturbance 
except  in  the  three  buildings  visited  by  these  brig- 
ands." 

The  cruel  deception  of  which  the  Duke  of  Rovigo 
had  been  the  victim,  was  for  the  Parisians,  who  are 
always  malicious  and  sharp-tongue d,  an  occasion  for 
numberless  jests  and  jeers.  Friends  and  enemies  of 
the  Empire  alike  laughed  at  it.  A  Minister  of  Police 
arrested,  a  Minister  of  Police  humbugged,  a  Minister 
of  Police  imprisoned,  was  a  godsend  to  the  merry- 
makers !  Punning  on  the  name  of  the  prison  to 
which  they  had  been  carried,  it  was  said  that  the 
Minister  and  the  Prefect  of  Police  had  made  a^ "  tour 
de  force."  Referring  to  the  fact  that  the  Minister's 
wife,  alarmed  by  her  husband's  nocturnal  arrest,  had 
run  out  of  her  room  in  her  chemise,  they  said  that 
"  in  the  whole  affair,  the  person  who  made  the  best 
appearance  was  she."  The  ladies,  who  were  frequently 
annoyed  by  the  interference  of  the  police,  were  avenged 
by  this  adventure,  and  said,  "  They  would  do  much 
better  to  busy  themselves  with  what  goes  on  in  the 
barracks  than  with  what  goes  on  in  our  boudoirs." 

Yet  the  affair  was  more  sad  than  laughable.  The 
Duke  of  Rovigo,  in  his  Memoirs,  thus  sums  the  mat- 


MALET 'S    CONSPIRACY.  43 

ter  up:  "Had  it  not  been  for  the  accident  which 
prevented  the  arrest  of  the  Minister  of  War  and 
returned  me  to  my  duties,  General  Malet  would  have 
been  in  control  of  a  great  many  things  in  a  very 
short  time,  and  in  a  country  very  susceptible  to  the 
contagion  of  example.  He  would  have  had  control 
of  the  Treasury,  which  was  then  well  filled,  of  the 
posts  and  the  telegraph,  and  there  were  in  France  a 
hundred  cohorts  of  the  National  Guard.  He  would 
have  learned  by  the  couriers  arriving  from  the  army 
the  lamentable  state  of  affairs  there,  and  nothing 
would  have  stood  in  the  way  of  his  seizing  the 
Emperor,  if  he  had  come  alone,  or  of  marching  to 
meet  him,  if  he  had  come  with  troops."  To  these 
pessimistic  views  the  Duke  of  Rovigo  adds  these 
words :  "In  spite  of  this,  Malet  would  not  long  have 
played  the  part  of  a  second  Cromwell,  because  the 
deception  would  have  been  soon  found  out,  and  every- 
body in  France  was  tired  of  agitation.  Probably  he 
would  have  been  alone  in  carrying  out  his  further 
plans.  But  the  danger  that  threatened  the  public 
peace  was  a  serious  one;  and  it  exposed  a  weak 
point  in  our  position  which  every  one  thought  more 
secure.  A  special  cause  of  surprise  was  the  readi- 
ness with  which  the  soldiers  believed  in  the  Em- 
peror's death,  without  its  occurring  to  a  single  officer 
to  seek  confirmation  of  the  statement,  and  above  all, 
without  thinking  of  his  son.  .  .  .  This  was  a  pain- 
ful thought,  and  those  who  did  not  like  to  deceive 
themselves  were  compelled  to  think  that  trouble 
was  in  the  air." 


44  MARIE    LOUISE. 


What  was  not  a  subject  of  laughter  was  the  rigid 
severity  with  which  General  Malet  and  his  accomplices 
were  treated,  whose  great  fault  had  been  excessive 
credulity.  The  trial,  which  took  place  before  a  mil- 
itary commission,  began  October  27.  One  of  the 
judges  said  to  Colonel  Soulier,  "  I  ask  you  how  it 
could  happen  that  a  superior  officer  should  lose  his 
head  when  Malet  came  to  him  and  told  him,  '  I  bring 
you  important  news;  the  Emperor  is  dead.'  On 
hearing  that,  a  loyal  officer  ought  to  have  all  his 
presence  of  mind.  It  is  just  on  occasions  like  that, 
it  should  be  understood,  that  soldiers  do  not  lose  their 
heads,  and  that  the  Emperor  is  immortal.  When  the 
Emperor  dies,  one  shouts,  '  Long  live  the  Emperor ! ' ' 
When  the  presiding  officer  asked  Malet  who  were  his 
accomplices,  he  answered  quickly,  "  All  France ;  you 
yourself,  sir,  if  I  had  succeeded."  After  the  speech 
of  the  government  advocate,  he  arose,  and  said,  "  A 
man  who  has  assumed  the  defence  of  his  country's 
rights  does  not  need  to  plead;  he  triumphs  or  he 
dies."  A  delay  was  asked  in  favor  of  Colonel  Sou- 
lier, who  had  wept  on  hearing  the  alleged  death  of 
the  Emperor,  but  this  delay  was  refused  him.  Within 
five  days  there  were  arrested,  tried,  and  condemned, 
fourteen  unhappy  men ;  and  of  these,  twelve,  includ- 
ing Generals  Malet,  Guidal,  and  Lahorie,  were  shot. 

Malet  was  the  only  one  who  deserved  death ;  but 
let  us  rather  quote  from  a  conscientious  and  distin- 
guished author,  M.  Albert  Duruy,  who,  in  the  Revue 
des  Deux  Mondes  for  February  1,  1879,  published  an 


MALET'S    CONSPIRACY.  45 

article  on  Malet's  conspiracy,  both  interesting  and 
novel.  "  Consider,"  he  says,  "  those  plumed  and 
bedizened  personages,  who  vanished  at  the  moment 
of  danger  like  the  decorations  of  the  opera,  and  when 
seen  again  were  doubly  obsequious;  consider,  on  the 
other  hand,  those  improvised  judges,  so  contemptuous 
of  the  rights  of  the  defence  and  of  the  simplest  rules 
of  justice,  so  eager  to  finish  with  the  affair,  and  you 
cannot  escape  a  painful  feeling.  The  viciousness  of 
excessive  centralization  makes  its  appearance  in  its 
most  odious  form,  and  in  view  of  this  general  confu- 
sion, it  is  easy  to  understand  the  successive  crumbling 
of  the  forms  of  government  that  followed.  All,  in 
various  degrees,  rested  on  public  officials;  and  in 
critical  moments  there  has  always  been  a  lack  of  the 
energetic  aid  and  solidity  which  should  have  been 
looked  for." 

In  foreign  countries  the  article  in  the  Moniteur, 
announcing  at  once  the  conspiracy  and  its  failure, 
produced  a  great  impression.  November  4,  1812, 
Count  Otto,  French  Ambassador  at  Vienna,  wrote  to 
the  Duke  of  Bassano,  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs, 
who  was  then  at  Wilna :  "  My  Lord,  on  receipt  of  the 
article  inserted  in  the  article  of  the  Moniteur  of 
October  24,  concerning  the  criminal  attempts  of  ex- 
Generals  Malet,  Lahorie,  and  Guidal,  the  Emperor  of 
Austria  hastened  to  send  a  courier  to  his  august 
daughter,  to  obtain  news  from  her  at  the  earliest 
possible  moment.  Your  Excellency  will  readily 
believe  that  this  article  has  produced  the  greatest 


46  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


sensation  here,  and  that  the  many  enemies  of  France 
are  already  making  numberless  conjectures  in  regard 
to  the  consequences  of  a  plot  that  has  failed,  but 
from  which  they  nevertheless  expect  the  greatest 
results.  Inasmuch  as  it  is  a  long  time  since  we  have 
had  any  direct  news  from  our  armies,  some  agitators 
pretend  that  our  troops  are  really  exterminated,  and 
that  His  Majesty  the  Emperor  is  no  longer  living. 
Russia  has  especial  advantages  for  disseminating  in 
Europe  false  reports.  A  great  many  of  its  richest 
nobles,  especially  women,  are  to  be  found  everywhere, 
living  in  the  highest  society,  and  attracting  by  their 
lavish  expenditures  a  herd  of  parasites,  who  are  ready 
to  flatter  them  and  to  serve  their  purposes.  It  is  to 
them  that  we  must  ascribe  the  wild  rumors  circulat- 
ing in  Europe.  I  notice,  in  fact,  by  my  letters  from 
Milan  and  Paris,  that  the  false  news,  so  common 
here,  flood  likewise  those  two  capitals :  I  may  even 
add  that  for  everything  concerning  Spain,  Paris  and 
Milan  take  the  initiative."  It  was  in  vain  that  Marie 
Louise  wrote  to  her  father,  November  21,  1812 :  "  I 
am  not  alarmed  by  the  disorder  which  a  few  insane 
men  have  caused,  for  I  know  too  well  the  good  char- 
acter of  the  people,  and  their  devotion  to  the  Em- 
peror, to  have  a  moment's  fear  " ;  the  blow  had  told. 
Up  to  that  time  the  French  administration  and  ex- 
cellent police  had  been  regarded  as  the  cornerstone 
of  the  Imperial  government.  From  that  moment, 
doubts  were  felt  all  over  Europe  concerning  the 
solidity  of  the  edifice,  and  people  began  to  say  that 


MALET'S    CONSPIRACY.  47 

France,  instead  of  resting,  as  had  been  supposed,  on 
a  firm  rock,  was  perhaps  over  a  volcano. 

Thiers  has  represented  Malet's  conspiracy  as  a 
wholly  Republican  plot.  We  are  inclined  to  believe 
that  it  was  rather  a  Royalist  conspiracy.  This  is  the 
thesis  which  M.  Albert  Duruy  has  supported  with 
original  documents,  and  with  arguments  that  to  us 
seem  convincing.  He  tries  to  prove,  and  we  think 
on  good  grounds,  that  this  affair  was  only,  so  to 
speak,  the  first  sketch,  the  prologue,  of  the  Royalist 
movement  of  1814.  The  ideas,  the  passions,  the 
language,  were  the  same.  Of  the  Republic  there  was 
not  a  word  either  in  the  false  decree  of  the  Senate  or 
in  the  other  forged  papers.  The  name  of  King  was 
not  uttered ;  but  it  is  evident  that  if  he  was  not  on 
the  stage,  he  was  at  least  just  behind  the  scenes. 
Who  were  Malet's  provisional  government?  General 
Moreau,  President;  Carnot,  Vice-President;  Count 
Frochot,  Prefect  of  the  Seine ;  the  Duke  Mathieu  de 
Montmorency ;  the  Count  Alexis  de  Noailles ;  Gen- 
erals Malet  and  Augereau,  Vice-Admiral  Truguet, 
Senators  Volney,  Garat,  Lambrecht,  Destutt-Tracy, 
and  Messrs.  Jacquemont  and  Florent-Guyot.  Was 
it  possible  in  1812  to  make  Moreau,  the  future  gene- 
ral of  the  Coalition,  pass  for  a  Republican  ?  Could  a 
Montmorency  and  a  Noailles  be  counted  as  adherents 
of  the  Republic?  Is  there  anything  Republican  in 
this  sentence  of  the  proclamation  which  the  conspir- 
ator intended  for  the  army :  "  Prove  to  the  country 
that  you  were  no  more  the  soldiers  of  Bonaparte  than 


48  MARIE    LOUISE. 


of  Robespierre  "  ?  And  what  must  we  think  of  this 
statement  in  the  false  decree  of  the  Senate  concern- 
ing "  the  despatch  of  a  deputation  to  His  Holiness, 
Pius  VII.,  to  beg  him,  in  the  name  of  the  nation,  to 
forget  the  evils  he  has  suffered,  and  to  invite  him  to 
come  to  Paris,  before  returning  to  Rome  "  ?  To  come 
to  Paris !  and  why  ?  Possibly  to  crown  the  King, 
after  he  had  crowned  the  Emperor.  And  that  other 
clause  in  the  forged  decree,  promising  amnesty  for  all 
military  offences,  even  for  desertion  to  foreign  parts, 
and  inspiring  the  wholesale  return  of  every  emigre, 
exile,  and  deserter :  did  not  this  do  the  work  of  the 
Royalists  ?  Moreover,  who  was  Malet's  principal 
fellow-worker  ?  An  ecclesiastic,  the  Abbe*  Lafon. 
He  succeeded  in  escaping,  and  in  a  history  of  the 
conspiracy  wrote  that  General  Malet  was  working, 
with  Messrs,  de  Puyvert  and  de  Polignac,  in  behalf 
of  the  re-establishment  of  the  legitimate  monarchy. 
And  was  not  General  Guidal  an  avowed  Royalist, 
whose  widow,  in  a  letter  written  in  1816,  recalled 
his  services  to  the  King,  Louis  XVIII.  ?  If  Malet 
had  not  been  shot  in  1812,  who  knows  whether  he 
might  not  have  been  chosen  Minister  of  War,  two 
years  later,  instead  of  General  Dupont  ?  Who  knows 
whether,  from  the  Royalist  point  of  view,  his  plot 
might  not  have  seemed  a  more  meritorious  action 
than  the  capitulation  of  Baylen?  Malet  doubtless 
thought  that  Jacobinism  was  more  out  of  favor  in 
France  than  Royalty.  This  madman,  this  victim  of 
hallucinations,  had,  as  it  were,  a  vision  of  the  future. 


MALET'S    CONSPIRACY.  49 

In  the  distance  he  had  seen  the  throne  of  the  Bour- 
bons restored,  the  white  flag  once  more  hoisted. 
This  pretended  Democrat,  this  so-called  Brutus,  of 
whom  Republicans  have  made  themselves  the  most 
ardent  apologists,  was,  we  may  be  sure,  only  a  would- 
be  Monk. 


IV. 

THE   RETREAT   FROM   RUSSIA. 

OCTOBER  23,  1812,  the  day  when  General 
Malet's  conspiracy  broke  out  in  Paris,  what 
was  happening  in  Russia  to  the  Grand  Army?  On 
that  day  Napoleon  was  manoeuvring  about  the  little 
town  of  Maro-Jaroslawitz.  He  was  deeply  pained 
by  being  compelled  to  retreat,  and  had  at  first  tried 
to  give  to  his  departure  from  Moscow  the  appearance 
of  an  advance ;  and  instead  of  taking  the  Smolensk 
road,  by  which  he  had  come,  had  taken  that  of 
Kalouga,  by  which  he  hoped  to  reach  a  fertile  coun- 
try where  he  might  pass  the  winter  in  a  mild  climate. 
Five  days  after  the  evacuation  of  Moscow  he  came 
across  the  army  of  KutusofT,  and  the  bloody  battle 
of  Maro-Jaroslawitz  was  fought.  Prince  Eugene 
covered  himself  with  glory.  Eighteen  thousand 
Italians  and  Frenchmen,  massed  in  a  ravine,  defeated 
fifty  thousand  Russians,  posted  over  their  heads  and 
favored  by  all  the  advantages  which  a  town  possesses 
when  built  at  the  top  of  a  steep  slope.  The  next 
day,  October  25,  the  battle-field  presented  an  even 
more  ghastly  spectacle  than  that  of  the  Moskowa. 
50 


THE    RETREAT   FROM    RUSSIA.  51 

The  same  day  the  Emperor  was  surprised  by  a  band 
of  Cossacks,  near  Gorodnia,  and  narrowly  escaped 
being  made  prisoner. 

The  army  was  already  the  prey  of  the  gloomiest 
forebodings,  and  yet  the  severe  cold  had  not  begun. 
The  only  way  left  was  to  take  the  shortest  road  to 
winter  quarters  in  Poland,  abandoning  the  march 
t9wards  the  south,  proceeding  to  Mojaisk,  and  thence 
taking  the  road  to  Smolensk,  as  rapidly  as  possible. 
Napoleon  felt  that  this  was  a  most  alarming  plan, 
but  the  fear  of  having  to  fight  a  second  battle  with 
KutusofT,  thus  giving  the  final  blow  to  the  Grand 
Army,  already  so  weakened;  of  having  to  abandon 
the  wounded,  too  numerous  to  be  transported ;  the 
sight  of  all  these  horrors  ;  his  reflections  on  his  threat- 
ened capture  by  the  Cossacks,  — all  these  things  made 
a  deep  impression  on  the  Emperor  and  diminished 
the  .energy  necessary  for  imposing  his  opinion.  No 
one,  not  even  he,  believed  any  longer  in  his  infalli- 
bility. It  was  October  26,  after  a  council  of  war 
held  in  a  barn  at  the  village  of  Gorodnia,  that  he 
made  the  decision  so  painful  to  his  pride  and  so  fatal 
in  its  results :  namely,  to  abandon  the  march  towards 
the  south  and  to  return  towards  the  north,  taking  as 
a  fugitive  the  road  by  which  he  had  come  as  con- 
queror. The  whole  march,  since  the  evacuation  of 
Moscow  and  the  costly  victory  of  Maro-Jaroslawitz, 
became  useless.  Seven  precious,  decisive  days  had 
thus  been  lost.  Properly  speaking,  it  was  October  26 
that  the  real  retreat  began. 


52  MARIE    LOUISE. 


In  gloom  and  discouragement  the  army  proceeded 
sadly,  and  yet  the  sky  was  clear;  no  snow  had  fallen. 
October  28  they  reached  Mojaisk.  When  they  saw 
again  the  battle-field  of  the  Moskowa,  lonely  and 
desolate,  silent  and  mournful,  shorn  of  the  terrible 
but  poetic  glow  of  combat,  they  were  overwhelmed 
with  painful  emotion.  The  bare  earth  trampled  and 
torn,  the  trees  shattered  by  cannon-balls,  the  helmets, 
cuirasses,  drums,  littering  the  ground,  the  redoubt, 
which  was  the  tomb  of  Caulaincourt  and  so  many 
other  heroes;  besides  the  chill  of  death,  the  frost 
which  had  stiffened  the  corpses  half  eaten  by  wolves 
and  vultures,  all  formed  a  terrible  spectacle.  The 
silence  of  the  plains  was  broken  only  by  the  cries  of 
birds  of  prey.  Alas !  what  had  been  the  result  of 
this  dreadful  battle  in  which  had  been  fired  sixty 
thousand  cannon-shots  and  fourteen  hundred  thou- 
sand musket  cartridges,  and  ninety  thousand  men 
had  been  killed  or  wounded  ?  What  result  had  been 
obtained  from  all  the  powder  burned,  from  all  the 
blood  shed?  This  was  a  bitter,  inevitable  thought, 
sure  to  dim  the  ardor  and  cool  the  enthusiasm  of  the 
hottest  lovers  of  warfare.  "  Our  hearts,"  says  Baron 
Fain,  "  were  filled  with  anguish  at  the  sight  of  this 
plain  where  so  many  of  our  comrades  had  perished. 
They  thought  that  they  died  for  victory  and  peace. 
As  we  passed  we  stepped  carefully,  lest  the  earth 
should  be  too  heavy  on  them  beneath  our  retreating 
footsteps." 

Napoleon  himself,  steeled  as  he  was  against  emo- 


THE   BETBEAT   FBOM   BUSSIA.  53 

tion,  shuddered  with  horror  at  the  sight  of  this  blood- 
stained field,  and  ordered  that  the  soldiers  should 
linger  there  as  short  a  time  as  possible ;  for  such 
a  sight  was  for  them  an  occasion  of  grief,  and  for 
himself  one  of  self-reproach.  The  retreat  continued, 
every  day  being  more  disastrous  and  more  sanguinary 
than  the  one  before. 

November  6,  the  Emperor  was  on  the  heights  of 
Mikalenska,  near  Dorogobush,  on  the  road  to  Smo- 
lensk, when  a  courier,  the  first  for  ten  days,  arrived 
from  Paris.  Napoleon  stopped  to  read  the  despatches 
which  brought  him  the  news  of  General  Malet's 
conspiracy.  He  turned  to  Count  Daru  and  said, 
"  Well !  if  we  had  stayed  at  Moscow  — "  Then  he 
went  into  a  palisaded  house,  which  had  been  a  post- 
station,  and  reflected  bitterly  on  the  news  he  had  just 
received.  "  What ! "  he  said,  with  as  much  surprise 
as  regret,  "  they  did  not  think  of  my  son,  my  wife, 
and  the  institutions  of  the  Empire  ?  "  Then  turning 
towards  General  Lariboisi£re,  who  had  known  person- 
ally the  principal  officers  of  Moreau's  army,  he  added, 
"  What  did  you  think  of  General  Lahorie  ?  "  Lari- 
boisidre  answered,  "  He  was  an  officer  of  the  highest 
merit,  who  would  have  served  you  well,  if  they  had 
not  tried  to  ruin  him  in  your  estimation ;  he  would 
have  served  you  as  General  Ebld  does,  whom  they 
tried  to  make  you  think  ill  of,  and  whose  character 
and  talents  you  are  able  to  judge  every  day."  "  You 
are  right,"  resumed  the  Emperor.  "  These  fools, 
after  letting  themselves  be  deceived,  are  trying  to 
make  up  for  it  by  shooting  men  by  the  dozen," 


54  MAEIE   LOUISE. 


November  6,  the  very  day  when  Napoleon  received 
the  news  of  Malet's  conspiracy,  the  weather  suddenly 
changed  for  the  worse.  The  sky,  which  had  been 
clear  for  several  days,  was  suddenly  covered  with 
frosty  vapors.  The  thermometer  fell  to  zero  F. 
Four  weeks  before,  the  Russian  peasants  had  said  to 
the  Frenchmen :  "  You  don't  know  our  climate.  In 
a  month  the  cold  will  freeze  your  nails  off."  The 
prophecy  came  true.  When  the  English  Commis- 
sioner Wilson  complained  of  delay,  the  old  Kutusoff 
only  said,  "Let  the  snow  come."  The  snow  did 
come;  earth  and  sky  were  one  white  pall.  Could 
the  Emperor  have  been  surprised  at  the  appearance 
of  his  cruelest  enemy,  the  winter?  Did  he  expect 
to  find  in  Russia  the  climate  of  Fontainebleau  and 
Compiegne  ?  Did  not  he  write  in  the  16th  bulletin 
of  the  Grand  Army,  dated  Viazma,  August  31,  1812, 
"  The  weather  to-day  is  very  fine,  and  we  expect  a 
continuance  of  pleasant  weather  until  October  10, 
which  will  give  us  yet  a  campaign  of  forty  days." 
And  after  he  had  written  that,  it  was  the  19th  of 
October  that  he  had  chosen,  not  for  the  beginning 
of  rest,  but  for  opening  the  most  dangerous  and  most 
terrible  campaign  that  had  ever  been  undertaken. 
When  he  saw  the  first  snowflakes  flying,  must  he 
not  have  regretted  the  thirty-five  days  he  lingered  at 
Moscow  ? 

The  great  disasters  began  at  this  moment.  High 
winds  and  severe  frosts  prevailed ;  a  polar  hurricane 
raged ;  the  snow,  driven  by  the  tempest,  drifted  into 


THE    RETREAT   FROM   RUSSIA.  55 

every  ravine  and  hollow,  hiding  chasms  into  which 
the  men  slipped;  all  the  furies  seemed  let  loose  at 
once  to  delay  their  march ;  the  blasts  cut  short  their 
breath ;  the  snow  concealed  an  ambush  at  every  step ; 
the  ice  prevented  men  and  horses  from  proceeding ; 
the  wind  knew  no  respite;  the  nights  were  sixteen 
hours  long,  and  in  them  it  was  impossible  to  lie  down, 
even  to  sit  down,  and  at  the  ghastly  dawn,  the  drums 
called  to  arms  soldiers  who  knew  no  waking !  Those 
who  escaped  death  looked  more  like  phantoms  than 
like  soldiers.  Their  thin  summer  clothing  was  frozen 
on  them.  Their  bleeding,  shoeless  feet  they  wrapped 
in  old  rags.  Their  guns  slipped  from  their  numb 
fingers.  They  had  no  more  bread.  The}^  could 
make  110  fires,  for  the  wood  of  the  trees  was  too 
green  to  burn.  Moreover,  warmth  meant  death. 
No  sooner  had  they  melted  a  little  snow  to  mix  with 
it  a  spoonful  of  rye  or  flour,  than  the  Cossacks  were 
upon  them,  hovering  always  about  like  swarms  of 
vultures,  appearing  and  vanishing  like  spectres,  slay- 
ing the  wounded,  capturing  or  killing  the  stragglers. 
"  About  the  Emperor,"  says  Baron  Fain,  an  eye-wit- 
ness of  these  horrors,  "  the  courtiers'  smiles  vanished 
from  the  lips  that  were  most  accustomed  to  wear 
them ;  every  face  bore  marks  of  distress.  The  brave 
men,  who  wore  no  mask,  were  the  only  ones  whose 
expressions  did  not  change  when  cold  and  sleepless- 
ness left  their  harsh  traces."  The  horses,  uncalked, 
slipt  and  fell,  never  to  rise.  The  cavalry  had  to 
march  on  foot;  the  artillery  could  not  be  drawn. 


56  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


No  one  could  keep  on  a  horse.  Napoleon  himself 
walked,  with  difficulty,  stick  in  hand.  The  edge  of 
the  ditches  was  lined  with  wretches,  who,  overcome 
with  cold,  succumbed  to  a  sleep  from  which  only  the 
last  trump  will  wake  them. 

Amid  all  these  sufferings,  one  hope  kept  up  the 
soldiers'  spirits,  —  that  of  reaching  Smolensk,  where 
they  expected  to  find  in  abundance  reinforcements, 
supplies,  clothes,  and  rest.  They  arrived  there  Novem- 
ber 9,  but  to  meet  a  cruel  deception.  The  supplies 
they  had  expected  were  wanting.  Starving  and 
infuriated,  the  soldiers  broke  open  the  shops  and  pil- 
laged them.  Napoleon  left  Smolensk,  November  14, 
at  five  in  the  morning:  a  longer  stay  would  have 
been  impossible.  Kutusoff's  army  was  not  the  only 
one  to  be  feared;  two  other  Russian  armies,  one 
commanded  by  Wittgenstein,  the  other  by  Tchitcha- 
koff,  threatened  to  block  the  retreat.  Time  was 
precious ;  not  a  moment  was  to  be  lost.  Smolensk, 
which  had  been  looked  forward  to  as  a  promised 
land,  was  only  one  more  illusion.  The  Grand  Army, 
which,  on  leaving  Moscow,  had  counted  one  hundred 
thousand  men,  had  been  reduced  in  twenty-five  days 
to  thirty-six  thousand.  They  had  to  resume  their 
march. 

"  The  elements  had  declared  against  France,"  said 
PSre  Lacordaire,  in  his  funeral  oration  over  General 
Drouot.  "  Those  heroic  bands,  which,  from  Lisbon  to 
Moscow,  from  the  Pyramids  to  Berlin,  had  met  no 
conqueror,  were  surprised  at  last  to  feel  their  hearts 


THE    RETREAT   FROM   RUSSIA.  57 

heavy,  their  arms  uncertain.  Providence  had  given 
nature  the  signal,  and  these  men,  so  often  defiant  of 
fortune,  were  for  the  first  time  overcome  with  weak- 
ness. Military  art  and  courage  could  no  longer  save 
them ;  they  needed  another  art,  another  courage : 
they  needed  moral  force,  courage  to  endure  and  hope 
forever."  All  possible  disasters  seemed  to  have  met 
at  the  same  spot.  Physical  and  moral  tortures  were 
combined.  Nature  seemed  anxious  to  determine  just 
how  much  men  could  suffer.  Let  us  honor  the  brave 
men  who  were  able  to  survive  such  harrowing  trials. 
At  Krasnoi,  November  17,  they  had  to  fight  a  bloody 
battle  to  keep  open  the  path  for  their  retreat.  In 
the  heat  of  the  action,  the  band  of  the  grenadiers 
of  the  Old  Guard,  those  sturdy  veterans  who  made 
a  rampart  with  their  bodies  about  their  Emperor, 
played  calmly  the  familiar  holiday  air,  "Where  is 
one  happier  than  in  the  bosom  of  one's  family?" 

The  retreat  became  even  more  perilous ;  it  seemed 
as  if  nothing  short  of  a  miracle  could  save  the  whole 
army,  from  Napoleon  to  the  humblest  soldier,  from 
extermination.  An  anecdote  which  we  quote  from 
Villemain  will  show  what  feeling  inspired  these 
heroes.  One  morning  when  the  dim  dawn  faintly 
lit  the  snowy  field  covered  with  the  corpses  of  men 
and  horses,  Napoleon,  lowering  the  window  of  the 
carriage  in  which  he  had  spent  the  night,  called  his 
aide-de-camp,  the  General  de  Narbonne.  "  What  a 
night,  my  dear  General !  "  he  said.  "  It  was  not 
worse  for  our  sentinels  than  it  was  for  me,  who  spent 


58  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


it  in  thinking,  without  closing  my  eyes.  See  that 
they  are  relieved,  and  do  you  take  this  to  revive  you ; 
for  courage  alone  can't  keep  a  man  warm  with  the 
thermometer  below  zero."  With  those  words  the 
Emperor  had  poured  from  a  jug  heated  by  an  alcohol 
lamp,  into  a  gold  cup,  a  mixture  of  boiling  coffee 
and  chocolate.  The  general  took  the  cup,  but  as  he 
was  raising  it  to  his  lips,  he  saw  a  grenadier  of  the 
Old  Guard,  on  sentry  duty,  whose  stern,  worn  face  be- 
trayed his  sufferings  only  overcome  by  courage.  "My 
man,"  he  said,  "  drink  this ;  I  command  you."  The 
grenadier  saluted,  took  the  cup,  and  drained  it  with 
one  draught,  then,  as  if  overwhelmed  with  remorse, 
he  exclaimed :  "  General,  how  cold  and  hunger  affect 
a  man  !  Ought  I  to  have  accepted  that  from  you 
when  you  had  it  at  your  own  lips  ?  I  beg  your  par- 
don, and,  on  my  word,  I  am  thoroughly  ashamed  of 
myself  now  that  my  stomach  is  warm."  And  he 
respectfully  handed  the  gold  cup  to  the  Count  of 
Narbonne.  "  No,  no,"  answered  the  general,  "  keep 
it !  "  Then  the  grenadier,  saluting  again,  said :  "  No ; 
God  forbid !  I  have  never  taken  anything  but  my 
pay  and  my  rations  when  there  have  been  any." 
When  the  general  insisted,  the  grenadier,  who  had 
set  the  cup  down  on  the  snow,  took  it  up  and  broke 
off  a  bit  as  large  as  a  twenty-franc  piece.  "  Since  you 
order  me,"  he  said,  "  I  will  keep  this  Napoleon  from 
the  gold  cup.  It  shall  be  my  medal ;  it  will  remind 
me  that  I  had  the  honor  to  be  on  guard  behind  the 
Emperor's  carriage,  at  this  festivity,  and  to  be 
relieved  by  you,  General." 


THE    EETEEAT    FROM   RUSSIA.  59 

Marshal  Davout  said  with  noble  pride,  "  We  were 
conquered  by  the  winter,  not  by  the  Russians."  The 
stoical  endurance  of  the  Grand  Army  has  wrung 
admiration  even  from  foreigners.  What  is  more 
epical,  more  impressive  than  General  de  Sdgur's 
description,  which  is  almost  a  poem  ?  Heinrich  Heine, 
the  author  of  the  Reitebilder,  said:  "The  heroes 
whom  we  admired  in  the  Iliad,  we  find  again  in 
Se'gur's  poem.  We  see  them  deliberating,  quarrel- 
ling, fighting  as  in  old  times  before  the  Scsean  gate. 
Although  the  helmet  of  the  King  of  Naples  was 
somewhat  motley,  his  courage  in  action  and  his  fear- 
lessness are  as  great  as  in  the  son  of  Peleus  ;  Prince 
Eugene  appears  before  us  like  a  gentle  and  brave 
Hector ;  Ney,  like  Ajax ;  Berthier  is  a  Nestor ;  Davout, 
Daru,  Caulaincourt,  recall  Menelaus,  Ulysses,  and 
Diomed." 

Everything  in  Napoleon  was  colossal;  his  adver- 
sity as  well  as  his  prosperity.  In  his  darkest  days, 
shortly  before  the  passage  of  the  Beresina,  he  said 
to  General  Jomini,  u  When  one  has  never  known  re- 
verses, they  will  be  as  great  as  his  good  fortunes." 
The  Emperor  of  legend,  in  good  or  evil  fortune, 
ever  impresses  posterity  as  a  gigantic  sphinx.  In 
this  figure,  which  is  rather  a  product  of  fable  than  a 
historic  fact,  there  is  an  attraction  which  fascinates 
even  his  enemies.  The  fierce  patriotism  of  Count 
Leo  Tolstoi  is  pained  by  this.  "  Strangely  and  ter- 
ribly enough,"  he  says,  "  Napoleon  is  for  the  Russians 
themselves  an  object  of  admiration  and  enthusiasm ; 


60  MAE  IE   LOUISE. 


in  their  eyes  he  is  great,  while  Kutusoff,  who  from 
the  beginning  to  the  end  of  1812,  from  Borodino  to 
Wilna,  persevered  in  one  plan,  never  varying  in  word 
or  deed,  an  unprecedented  example  of  the  most  abso- 
lute self-denial,  seeing  in  what  was  happening  about 
him  the  future  results,  is  represented  by  them  as  a 
colorless  being,  deserving  at  the  most  of  pity,  a  being 
whom  often  they  mention  only  with  ill-disguised 
shame." 

As  the  retreat  continued,  the  sufferings  and  disas- 
ters only  grew.  On  reaching  Orcha,  November  19, 
only  about  twenty-four  thousand  men  under  arms 
and  about  twenty-five  thousand  stragglers  were  left ; 
that  is  to  say,  about  one-eighth  of  the  four  hundred 
thousand  men  who  had  crossed  the  Niemen.  Two 
new  Russian  armies,  those  of  Wittgenstein  and  Tchit- 
chakoff,  were  about  to  oppose  the  crossing  of  the 
Beresina.  The  situation  appeared  absolutely  des- 
perate. Napoleon,  feeling  that  all  was  lost,  burned 
all  the  documents  that  he  had  carried  with  him  in 
order  to  write  his  autobiography,  —  a  distraction  he  had 
purposed  to  give  himself  if  he  had  spent  the  winter 
at  Moscow.  He  had  the  eagles  of  every  corps  brought, 
and  ordered  them  to  be  burned.  He  collected  in  two 
battalions  eighteen  hundred  dismounted  cavalrymen 
of  the  Imperial  Guard,  of  whom  only  eleven  hundred 
and  forty-four  were  supplied  with  muskets  or  car- 
bines. Of  all  the  cavalry  that  had  left  Moscow,  only 
a  few  mounted  men  were  left.  The  Emperor  collected 
about  him  all  the  officers  of  this  army  who  had  saved 


THE    RETREAT    FROM   RUSSIA.  61 

their  horses,  and  transformed  them  into  what  he 
called  his  sacred  battalion,  in  which  generals  of  divis- 
ions served  as  simple  captains. 

When  they  had  come  before  the  Beresina,  Napoleon 
was  in  the  most  critical  position  of  his  whole  eventful 
career.  Three  Russian  armies,  amounting  to  a  hun- 
dred and  forty  thousand  men,  barred  every  passage, 
and  enclosed  in  an  iron  circle  what  had  once  been 
the  Grand  Army.  To  cross  the  river  in  such  circum- 
stances seemed  impossible,  yet  Napoleon  did  not  for 
an  instant  think  of  surrendering.  His  veterans  said, 
"  He  will  get  us  out  of  even  this." 

How  was  he  to  bridge  the  Beresina?  Everything 
impeded  the  task :  the  marshy  banks  of  the  river,  the 
half-frozen  water,  the  pieces  of  ice  carried  by  the  cur- 
rent, the  Russians  on  both  sides  in  vastly  superior 
numbers.  But  the  chief  engineer,  General  Ebl^,  had 
saved  a  caisson  full  of  tires  that  had  been  thrown 
away,  and  these  he  had  made  into  cramp-irons.  This 
was  the  army's  only  chance  for  safety.  The  pontoon- 
makers  were  heroes  who  sacrificed  themselves  with- 
out a  murmur.  The  whole  night  of  the  .25th  of 
November  they  worked  on  without  stopping,  within 
range  of  the  enemy's  cannon  and  musketry,  by  the 
light  of  fires  burning  on  the  opposite  bank.  They 
worked  in  the  same  way  all  through  the  26th.  They 
were  up  to  their  necks  in  the  icy  stream ;  they  hardly 
stopped  long  enough  to  swallow  a  little  unsalted  soup- 
meat.  There  were  a  hundred  of  them,  and  of  this 
number  but  five  returned  to  France  :  all  the  rest  died 


62  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


from  exhaustion  and  exposure.  But  they  built  the 
bridges  and  saved  their  Emperor.  The  27th,  thanks 
to  their  devotion,  Napoleon  was  able  to  cross  the 
river.  When  he  reached  the  opposite  bank,  Napo- 
leon exclaimed,  "  There's  my  star  again  !  "  He  al- 
ways persisted  in  thinking  that  his  star  was  shining 
even  when  the  skies  were  blackest.  "  At  this  mo- 
ment," says  Baron  Fain,  "  one  would  have  thought 
that  a  ray  of  sunlight  pierced  the  snowy  mist  that 
encompassed  us." 

Napoleon  had  crossed,  but  what  was  to  become  of 
the  army?  The  plan  of  the  Russians  was  to  attack 
it  on  the  two  banks  while  crossing,  and  to  drive  it 
into  the  river.  The  two  bridges  —  one  for  the  infantry, 
the  other  for  the  artillery  and  baggage  —  were  torn 
by  missiles.  A  terrible  confusion  prevailed.  Men, 
women,  and  children,  crushed,  suffocated,  were  strug- 
gling beneath  the  feet  of  their  companions,  whom 
they  grasped  with  their  teeth  and  nails ;  shells  were 
bursting ;  men  were  swearing,  shouting,  groaning ; 
women  were  weeping  ;  children  crying ;  horses  were 
plunging  wildly ;  cannon-balls  were  ploughing  through 
the  surging  mass  !  Never  did  the  world  behold  a 
ghastlier  sight ;  the  reality  surpassed  Dante's  most 
terrible  visions ;  no  dreamer  ever  conceived  any  such 
circles  of  iron,  of  ice,  of  fire  ! 

Most  unfortunate  were  those  who  had  not  time  to 
cross,  who,  worn  out  by  their  fatigue  and  their  suf- 
fering, until  they  had  lost  the  feeling  of  self-preserva- 
tion, lingered  on  the  bank  for  a  few  moments'  rest. 


THE    RETREAT    FROM   RUSSIA.  63 

The  Russians  advanced,  and  it  became  necessary  to 
burn  the  bridges  lest  the  Russians  should  make  use  of 
them.  Orders  were  given  to  set  fire  to  them  at  seven 
in  the  morning.  General  Eble',  out  of  humanity, 
delayed  until  nine  o'clock ;  but  he  had  to  obey  then, 
and  the  fire  was  set.  Clouds  of  smoke  enveloped  the 
two  bridges,  and  the  wretches  who  were  on  them 
jumped  into  the  water  lest  they  should  be  hurled  in 
by  their  fall.  From  the  crowd  on  the  other  shore, 
making  ready  to  cross,  there  rose  a  terrible  cry  of 
anger  and  despair.  Some  sprang  into  the  river, 
others  upon  the  blazing  bridges.  They  perished  in 
the  flames  or  the  frost,  victims  of  fire  or  cold,  crushed 
beneath  the  wheels  of  the  wagons  or  the  horses'  feet, 
or  pierced  by  the  bullets  or  cannon-balls  of  the  two 
posts.  Those  left  on  the  shore  —  some  eight  or 
ten  thousand  men,  women,  and  children  —  were  cap- 
tured by  the  Cossacks,  who  put  many  to  death ;  the 
rest  were  sent  to  Siberia. 

Thus,  November  29,  ended  the  crossing  of  the 
Beresina,  which  had  begun  on  the  20th.  It  was 
a  victory ;  but  one  dearly  paid  for !  Napoleon  was  to 
stay  but  seven  days  longer  with  his  troops.  From 
the  moment  he  had  thus  miraculously  escaped  from 
the  Caudine  Forks,  he  had  but  one  thought,  —  to 
leave. 

As  in  Egypt,  he  was  suddenly  seized  with  an 
attack  of  homesickness.  Always  impatient  and  eager 
in  carrying  out  his  plans,  he  desired  to  return  to 
Paris  as  he  had  desired  to  enter  Moscow.  The  Tui- 


64  MARIE    LOUISE. 


leries  became  his  goal,  as  the  Kremlin  had  been.  He 
counted  the  days,  hours,  and  minutes  separating  him 
from  the  moment  when  he  should  ascend  the  steps  of 
the  grand  staircase  of  his  palace.  He  had  no  remorse 
in  stealing  away  from  the  fragments  of  the  Grand 
Army,  in  going,  like  the  Persian  King  whom  JEschylus 
set  on  the  stage,  a  fugitive  and  alone,  "  with  an  empty 
quiver."  What  could  he  do  at  the  head  of  disbanded 
troops,  without  their  uniforms,  wrapped  up  in  rags  ? 
What  would  Germany  —  still  submissive,  but  quiver- 
ing—  say  when  it  should  see  the  ruler  of  the  great 
Empire  in  this  plight?  From  Wilna  or  Konigsberg 
he  would  be  seen  by  Europe  only  in  the  light  of  a 
defeated  man.  From  the  Tuileries,  on  the  other  hand, 
he  would  still  make  an  immense  impression:  there 
he  would  have  with  him  his  wife,  his  son,  his  Minis- 
ters, his  Chamberlains,  his  flatterers.  At  his  reviews 
in  the  Carrousel,  he  would  see  superb  regiments, 
gorgeous  uniforms ;  Malet's  conspiracy  would  be  of 
some  use  to  him ;  it  would  give  him  a  chance  to  com- 
plain, to  appear  as  an  accuser  instead  of  the  accused, 
to  knit  his  brow  like  Olympian  Zeus.  And  then  if 
he  did  not  leave,  other  Malets  might  rise.  When 
that  plot  broke  out,  the  disasters  were  yet  unknown. 
The  Emperor  was  thought  to  be  at  Moscow,  enjoying 
an  agreeable  climate  and  preparing  to  spend  a  quiet 
winter  in  the  Palace  of  the  Czars. 

In  Paris,  not  a  word  had  been  said  about  the 
retreat ;  no  one  knew  anything  about  the  winter  and 
its  snows.  Could  the  truth  long  be  hid  ?  Would 


THE    RETREAT    FROM   RUSSIA.  65 

every  officer's  letter  have  to  be  intercepted?  Only 
one  man  could  make  the  Parisians  accept  the  fatal 
news,  and  that  was  the  Emperor.  If  he  were  present, 
he  said  to  himself,  there  would  be  no  rebellion,  no 
murmuring.  He  would  be  obeyed  and  silently ;  possi- 
bly he  would  be  admired;  and  the  great  player,  with- 
out delay  or  hesitation,  prepared  his  vengeance  in  the 
face  of  a  downtrodden  Europe. 

Once  decided,  Napoleon  tolerated  no  discussion. 
At  Smorgoni,  in  the  evening  of  December  5,  he  sum- 
moned the  King  of  Naples,  Prince  Eugene,  and  the 
marshals,  and  announced  to  them  his  departure.  "  I 
shall  leave  you,"  he  said ;  "  but  it  is  to  get  three  hun- 
dred thousand  soldiers.  '  We  must  make  ready  for  a 
second  campaign,  since  the  first  has  not  ended  the 
war.  .  .  .  And  why  not?  Our  only  conqueror  is 
the  cold,  which  came  so  early  that  it  deceived  even 
the  natives.  Schwarzenberg's  counter-marches  have 
done  the  rest.  So  the  unheard-of  audacity  of  an  incen- 
diary, an  unprecedented  winter,  cowardly  intrigues, 
stupid  ambitions,  a  few  faults,  possibly  treachery,  and 
shameful  mysteries  which  will  come  to  light  some 
day,  have  brought  us  to  our  present  condition.  Was 
ever  a  good  chance  disturbed  by  more  unexpected 
accidents?  The  Russian  campaign  will  none  the 
less  be  the  most  glorious,  the  most  difficult,  and  the 
most  honorable  known  to  modern  history."  Then  he 
gave  deserved  praise  to  his  principal  lieutenants,  and 
appeared  more  affable  and  kindly  than  usual.  He 


66  MAEIE   LOUISE. 


confessed  that  every  one,  he  himself  like  the  rest, 
had  blundered  more  than  once  in  the  campaign,  and 
added,  "  If  I  had  been  born  to  the  throne,  if  I  were 
a  Bourbon,  it  would  have  been  easy  for  me  to  make 
no  blunders."  Then  they  sat  down  to  table.  After 
the  supper  the  Emperor  had  Prince  Eugene  read  the 
29th  and  last  bulletin,  which  was  to  produce  so  ter- 
rible an  effect.  The  reading  finished,  he  said,  "I 
leave  at  once  for  Paris  with  Duroc,  Caulaincourt, 
and  Lobau.  My  presence  there  is  indispensable; 
only  from  there  can  I  restrain  the  Austrians  and  the 
Prussians.  Without  doubt  they  will  hesitate  to 
declare  war  against  me  when  they  know  that  I  am 
at  the  head  of  the  French  nation  and  of  a  new  army 
of  twelve  hundred  thousand  men.  ...  I  make  over 
the  command  to  the  King  of  Naples.  I  hope  that 
the  most  perfect  harmony  will  prevail  among  you." 

After  these  words  Napoleon  arose,  shook  hands 
affectionately  with  his  lieutenants,  embraced  them 
all,  and  got  into  his  carriage  with  Caulaincourt.  On 
the  seat  were  the  Mameluke  Rustan  and  a  captain  of 
the  Guard,  Wonsovitch,  a  Pole,  who  was  to  act  as 
interpreter  on  the  way.  Duroc  and  Lobau  followed 
in  a  sleigh.  It  was  ten  in  the  evening.  The  ther- 
mometer marked  18°  F. 

The  next  day  the  army  learned  that  the  Emperor 
had  left.  It  was  in  such  a  state  of  misery  and  dis- 
couragement that  it  paid  scarcely  any  attention  to 
the  departure  which,  a  few  days  before,  would  have 


THE    RETREAT    FROM    RUSSIA.  67 

caused  a  feeling  of  keen  surprise  and  of  profound 
disappointment.  Every  one  felt  that  Napoleon  was 
no  longer  the  protector  of  his  army ;  that  his  genius, 
once  capable  of  wonders,  had  suddenly  become  power- 
less, both  against  the  winter  and  against  fate. 


V. 

THE  EMPEROR'S  RETURN. 

ITAECEMBER  5,  1812,  the  day  Napoleon  left  his 
JL^  army  like  a  fugitive,  Paris  was  perfectly  tran- 
quil. Salvos  of  artillery  were  fired  as  a  signal  for 
rejoicing,  and  to  announce  for  the  next  day  the  anni- 
versary of  the  coronation  and  of  the  battle  of  Aus- 
terlitz.  This  holiday  had  been  postponed  from  the 
2d  of  December  to  the  6th,  because  the  6th  was  a 
Sunday.  That  day  the  Empress  Marie  Louise  was 
to  leave  the  Palace  of  Saint  Cloud  and  establish  her- 
self for  the  winter  at  the  Tuileries.  At  midday  she 
received  the  Diplomatic  Body,  surrounded  by  the 
Princes,  Ministers,  Grand  Eagles  of  the  Legion  of 
Honor,  High  Officers  of  the  Crown,  and  the  members 
of  her  household  and  of  that  of  the  Emperor.  After 
the  audience,  she  went  to  the  chapel,  where  she  heard 
mass  and  the  Te  Deum.  In  the  evening,  in  the  palace 
theatre,  she  heard  Cimarosa's  opera,  the  Horaces. 
Madame  Grassini  and  Madame  Sessi  sang  the  princi- 
pal women's  parts.  The  Tuileries  and  the  city  were 
illuminated ;  and  yet,  what  cause  was  there  for  joy  ? 
The  real  illumination  was  that  of  burning  Moscow. 


THE    EMPEROR'S    RETURN.  69 

It  was  not  the  playhouses,  but  the  churches  that 
should  have  been  crowded,  to  pray  for  the  dead,  to 
try  to  avert  God's  wrath  which  had  fallen  so  heavily 
on  France. 

The  bad  news  had  not  yet  arrived,  but  a  vague 
presentiment  made  every  one  uneasy.  People  said 
that  the  wonders  of  Austerlitz  could  not  be  repeated, 
and  no  one  counted  on  the  thunderbolts  to  which 
Napoleon  had  accustomed  the  world.  No  change 
was  visible :  officials  and  courtiers  seemed  to  believe 
the  Emperor's  fortune  eternal :  the  Empress's  face 
was  always  calm ;  but,  in  spite  of  her  inexperience, 
the  young  sovereign  was  intelligent  to  detect  the 
gradual  modification  of  public  opinion  even  before 
messengers  came  with  the  evil  tidings. 

Meanwhile,  Napoleon  in  his  latest  bulletins  had 
made  use  of  every  euphemism  to  calm  men's  minds. 
His  25th  bulletin,  dated  October  25,  and  published 
in  the  Moniteur  of  November  9,  announced  the  evac- 
uation of  the  City  of  the  Czars  in  these  terms  :  "  The 
Emperor  left  Moscow  October  10.  ...  Moscow  is 
not  a  military  position.  Moscow  has  no  longer  any 
political  importance,  inasmuch  as  this  city  is  burned 
and  ruined  for  a  hundred  years.  The  Marshal  of 
Treviso  remains  there  with  a  garrison.  The  weather 
is  very  fine,  like  that  in  France  in  October,  per- 
haps a  little  warmer.  But  early  in  November  cold 
weather  may  be  expected.  Everything  makes  it 
necessary  to  prepare  for  winter  quarters.  This  h 
necessary  for  the  cavalry  especially ;  the  infantry 


70  MARIE    LOUISE. 


has  rested  at  Moscow  and  is  in  excellent  condition." 
The  26th  bulletin,  dated  October  23,  and  published 
in  the  Moniteur  of  November  16,  betrayed  110  anxiety. 
"  The  Duke  of  Treviso,"  it  said,  "  blew  up  the  Krem- 
lin October  23,  at  two  o'clock  in  the  morning.  The 
arsenal,  the  barracks,  the  magazines,  were  all  de- 
stroyed. This  ancient  citadel,  which  dates  from  the 
foundation  of  the  monarchy,  —  this  first  Palace  of  the 
Czars,  —  has  ceased  to  be.  The  Emperor  intends  to 
start  the  24th,  to  reach  the  Dwina,  and  to  take  a 
position  within  eighty  leagues  of  Saint  Petersburg  and 
of  Wilna,  —  a  twofold  advantage,  being  thus  twenty 
marches  nearer  both  the  means  and  the  end.  .  .  . 
The  Russians  are  amazed  at  the  weather  of  the  last 
three  weeks,  in  which  we  have  had  the  bright  sun 
and  the  pleasant  days  of  our  visits  to  Fontainebleau. 
The  army  is  in  a  very  fertile  region,  which  compares 
favorably  with  those  of  France  and  Germany.'.' 

The  27th  bulletin,  which  was  dated  October  27, 
and  appeared  in  the  Moniteur  of  November  17,  was 
equally  optimistic:  "The  weather  is  superb,  the 
roads  are  good;  it  is  the  end  of  the  autumn;  this 
weather  will  last  for  a  week,  and  by  that  time  we 
shall  have  got  into  our  new  positions.  The  Italian 
guard  distinguished  itself  at  the  battle  of  Maro- 
Jaroslawitz.  The  old  Russian  infantry  is  destroyed. 
The  Russian  army  now  exists  only  by  means  of  the 
numerous  reinforcements  of  Cossacks  recently  arrived 
from  the  Don."  The  28th  bulletin,  dated  at  Smo- 
lensk, November  11,  and  published  in  the  Moniteur 


THE    EMPEROR'S    RETURN.  71 

of  November  29,  was  not  perfectly  reassuring,  but  it 
did  not  tell  a  hundredth  part  of  the  disasters  :  "  The 
weather  was  very  fine  until  November  6,  but  on  the 
7th  the  winter  began.  The  earth  is  covered  with 
snow.  The  roads  have  become  very  slippery,  and 
very  hard  for  the  draught  horses.  We  have  lost 
many  of  them  by  the  cold  and  fatigues.  Since  the 
storm  of  the  6th  we  have  lost  more  than  fifty  thou- 
sand draught  horses,  and  nearly  a  hundred  caissons 
have  been  destroyed.  The  Emperor's  health  has 
never  been  better." 

Do  not  these  bulletins  read  like  cruel  jests  ?  Could 
the  truth  be  better  hidden  ?  This  terrible  retreat,  the 
most  disastrous  known  to  history,  was  represented  as 
a  strategic  march,  somewhat  impeded  by  unfavorable 
weather.  But  public  opinion  was  not  reassured,  and 
in  spite  of  the  official  optimism,  men  began  to  think 
of  nothing  but  ruin  and  destruction. 

For  his  part,  Napoleon  had  skilfully  prepared  for 
his  own  return.  Three  days  before  leaving  his  army 
he  had  sent  on  as  a  forerunner,  one  of  the  aides  of 
the  Prince  of  Neufch&tel,  Major  de  Montesquieu,  who 
was  to  inform  Europe  of  some  of  the  recent  events, 
while  setting  them  in  a  favorable  light.  The  instruc- 
tions he  carried  ran  thus:  "Selitche,  December  2, 1812. 
M.  de  Montesquieu  will  leave  at  once  for  Paris.  He 
will  give  the  Empress  the  enclosed  letter.  On  his 
way  he  will  see  the  Duke  of  Bassano  at  Wilna,  to 
inform  him  of  the  necessity  of  stopping  individual 
soldiers,  and  of  feeding  them,  and  especially  of  pro- 


72  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


viding  a  great  quantity  of  supplies,  bread,  meat,  and 
brandy,  in  order  to  give  the  army  abundance  after  its 
present  distress.  Everywhere  he  is  to  announce  the 
arrival  of  ten  thousand  Russian  prisoners,  and  the 
victory  gained  on  the  Beresina,  in  which  were  cap- 
tured six  thousand  Russian  prisoners,  eight  flags,  and 
twelve  cannon.  He  will  also  announce  it  at  Kowno, 
Konigsberg,  Berlin,  and  to  M.  de  Saint  Marson,  and 
publish  everywhere  in  the  gazettes:  4M.  de  Mon- 
tesquiou,  aide-de-camp  of  the  Prince  of  Neufchatel, 
has  passed  through,  bringing  news  of  the  victory  of 
the  Beresina  gained  by  the  Emperor  over  the  united 
armies  of  Admiral  Tchitchakoff  and  General  Witt- 
genstein. He  is  carrying  to  Paris  eight  flags,  taken 
from  the  Russians  in  this  battle,  in  which  six  thou- 
sand prisoners  and  twelve  cannon  were  captured. 
When  this  officer  left,  the  Emperor  Napoleon  was  at 
Wilna,  in  excellent  health.'  M.  de  Montesquiou 
will  travel  as  rapidly  as  possible,  in  order  to  contra- 
dict everywhere  false  rumors.  He  will  say  that 
they  tried  to  divide  the  French,  who,  however,  scat- 
tered them  to  the  four  winds ;  that  they  have  reached 
Wilna,  where  they  have  found  numerous  stores,  and 
that  they  will  soon  have  recovered  from  their  suffer- 
ings. On  reaching  Paris  he  will  give  the  Empress 
details  of  the  Emperor's  good  health,  and  the  state 
of  the  army.  Then  he  will  await  new  orders." 

Napoleon  continued  his  speedy  flight.  He  did  not 
even  enter  Wilna,  but  passed  through  Wilkowiski, 
where  he  changed  his  carriage  for  a  sleigh,  and  in 


THE    EMPEROR'S    RETURN.  73 

the  same  clandestine  way  reached  Warsaw  December 
10.  He  did  not  even  dare  to  go  to  his  Ambassador's, 
M.  de  Pradt,  Archbishop  of  Malines,  but  sought  re- 
tirement in  a  wretched  inn,  where  he  had  great  diffi- 
culty in  getting  a  fire  lit.  Caulaincourt  called  on 
the  Ambassador,  greatly  surprising  him  by  his  unex- 
pected appearance.  The  archbishop  at  once  went 
to  the  inn  where  the  sovereign  of  so  many  nations 
resembled  the  obscurest  traveller.  The  conqueror 
himself  was  struck  by  the  contrast,  and  said  to  the 
Ambassador,  with  a  forced  laugh,  "It's  but  a  step 
from  the  sublime  to  the  ridiculous."  Then  he  added 
in  a  calm  voice  :  "  Who  has  escaped  reverses  ?  It  is 
true  that  no  one  has  ever  had  any  like  these,  but 
they  had  to  be  proportionate  to  my  fortune,  and 
besides  they  will  be  soon  repaired."  Then  he  sum- 
moned the  principal  Polish  ministers,  urged  upon 
them  absolute  silence  concerning  his  presence  in 
Warsaw,  promised  to  return  speedily  with  three  hun- 
dred thousand  fresh  troops,  and  continued  his  jour- 
ney under  an  assumed  name,  still  accompanied  by 
Duroc,  Caulaincourt,  Lobau,  Captain  Wonsowitch, 
and  the  Mameluke  Rustan. 

Meanwhile  M.  de  Montesquieu,  in  accordance  with 
his  instructions,  had  inserted  in  all  the  papers  of 
Lithuania  and  Germany  the  statement  that  the 
Emperor  was  at  Wilna  in  good  health,  but  at  Wilna 
no  one  had  seen  Napoleon.  Every  one  was  wondering 
what  had  happened.  Had  he  disappeared  like  Romu- 
lus in  a  storm  ?  Had  he  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the 


74  MARIE    LOUISE. 


Cossacks  ?  Was  he  buried  in  the  snowdrifts  ?  Had 
some  German  fanatic  stabbed  him  ?  Was  he  a  pris- 
oner? or  dead?  Nothing  was  known  about  this  man 
who  a  moment  before  had  stood  forth  before  a  dazed 
world  as  an  Agamemnon,  king  of  kings,  as  a  second 
Charlemagne  !  From  Lithuania  to  the  heart  of  Aus- 
tria the  rumor  suddenly  spread  that  he  was  no  longer 
alive,  and  the  breath  of  whole  nations  paused  in  sol- 
emn expectation.  The  sleigh  was  gliding  on,  and  no 
one  who  saw  it  passing  like  a  flash  over  the  plains  of 
Poland  and  Saxony  imagined  that  the  fragile  sleigh 
was  carrying  Caesar  and  his  fortunes. 

December  14,  the  illustrious  fugitive  reached  Dres- 
den by  night  and  took  quarters,  still  incognito, 
at  the  Ambassador's,  M.  de  Serra.  At  Dresden, 
where  a  few  months  before  he  had  held  a  magnificent 
court  of  kings  and  princes,  and  where  his  face  was 
distinctly  remembered,  he  had  to  take  the  greatest 
precautions  to  escape  recognition.  He  received  se- 
cretly the  King  of  Saxony,  the  best  and  most  faithful 
of  his  allies,  and  tried  to  reassure  him  by  grand  prom- 
ises. Then  he  wrote  this  letter  to  the  Emperor  of 
Austria :  — 

"December  14,  1812.  MY  BROTHER  AND  MY 
DEAR  FATHER-IN-LAW  :  I  stop  for  a  moment  at  Dres- 
den to  write  to  Your  Majesty  and  to  give  you  news  of 
myself.  In  spite  of  rather  severe  fatigues,  my  health 
has  never  been  better.  I  started  from  Lithuania 
the  5th  of  this  month,  after  the  battle  of  the  Beresina, 
leaving  the  Grand  Army  under  the  orders  of  the  King 


THE    EMPEROR'S    RETURN.  75 

of  Naples,  the  Prince  of  Neufchatel  still  holding  his 
post  of  major-general.  In  four  days  I  shall  be  in 
Paris,  where  I  shall  spend  the  winter  to  look  after 
my  most  important  affairs.  Possibly  Your  Majesty 
will  decide  to  send  there  some  one  in  the  absence  of 
your  Ambassador,  whose  presence  is  of  such  service 
to  the  army.  The  different  bulletins  which  the  Duke 
of  Bassano  cannot  have  failed  to  send  Count  Otto 
will  have  informed  Your  Majesty  of  everything  that 
has  happened  since  our  departure  from  Moscow.  It 
is  important,  in  the  present  circumstances,  that  Your 
Majesty  should  mobilize  his  corps  in  Galicia  and  Tran- 
sylvania, thus  raising  his  forces  to  sixty  thousand  men. 
I  have  perfect  confidence  in  Your  Majesty's  feelings. 
The  alliance  we  have  contracted  forms  a  permanent 
system  to  assure  the  triumph  of  the  common  cause, 
and  to  bring  us  speedily  to  a  suitable  peace.  You 
may  be  sure  that  I  for  my  part  shall  always  be  found 
ready  to  do  everything  in  my  power  to  please  you  and 
to  convince  you  of  the  importance  I  attach  to  our 
existing  relations,  as  well  as  to  give  proofs  of  the 
perfect  esteem  and  high  consideration  with  which 
I  am  Your  Majesty's  affectionate  brother  and  son-in- 
law,  NAPOLEON." 

The  Emperor  left  Dresden  as  stealthily  as  he  entered 
it ;  and  always  buried  in  thick  furs,  concealed  under  a 
false  name,  he  continued  his  swift  journey  in  a  sleigh 
with  the  same  companions.  This  strange  journey 
was  not  unpleasant  to  him.  Curious  and  romantic 
experiences  suited  his  adventurous  nature,  which  was 


76  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


greedy  of  emotions.  Then,  too,  it  was  a  real  conso- 
lation no  longer  to  have  before  his  eyes  the  lamentable 
spectacle  of  his  army,  whose  terrible  sufferings  would 
have  awakened,  if  not  remorse,  at  least  pity,  in  the 
coldest  heart.  Possibly  Napoleon  fleeing  in  his  sleigh 
over  the  snowy  plains  was  not  so  unhappy  as  one  might 
at  first  suppose.  His  reverses,  though  as  vast,  as 
portentous  as  his  triumphs,  had  not  at  all  discouraged 
him.  What  he  had  seen  on  the  bridge  of  the  Beresina, 
as  on  that  of  Arcole,  was  his  unexpected  good  fortune, 
—  what  he  always  called  his  star.  He  comforted 
himself  with  the  thought  that  any  one  else  in  such 
circumstances  would  have  perished,  and  he  prepared 
himself  for  new  adventures.  The  thoughts  that  flashed 
through  his  mind  as  he  hurried  along  through  Ger- 
many, exposed  to  any  fanatic  who  might  recognize 
and  assassinate  him,  were  not  those  of  moderation, 
prudence,  or  repentance,  but  those  of  pride,  victory, 
and  dominion.  He  was  like  a  bold  rider -who,  on 
being  once  thrown,  thinks  only  of  vaulting  into  his 
saddle,  and  of  whipping,  spurring,  and  mastering  his 
wayward  steed.  His  steed  was  fortune.  What  did 
he  think  of  what  the  Abbe*  Perreyve  called  "  that 
army  invisible  to  the  bodily  eye,  but  too  visible  to 
the  mind's  eye,  which  begins  its  bloody  march,  that 
grand  army  of  the  dead,  the  slain,  the  abandoned, 
the  forgotten,  the  army  of  those  atrocious  sufferings 
and  those  prolonged  infirmities,  which  proceeds  in 
mournful  procession  behind  what  we  call  glory "  ? 
Away  with  phantoms  and  odious  memories  !  That  is 


THE    EMPEROR'S    RETURN.  77 

past ;  now  for  revenge  !  The  loss  of  the  highest  stake 
never  broke  the  spirit  of  an  untiring  gambler.  Like 
Don  Juan  before  his  guest  of  stone,  he  hardened 
himself  against  Fate.  Fate  summoned  him  to  repen- 
tance ;  he  did  not  repent. 

Feverishly  he  seized  again  the  dice,  again  to  shake 
them  once  more  in  the  box,  proud  and  confident  before 
the  final  throw.  He  made  no  recriminations,  uttered 
no  laments.  He  had  to  reign  again,  remount  his 
horse,  hold  reviews,  summon  a  huge  army  of  con- 
scripts to  arms,  and  once  more  to  make  Europe  trem- 
ble. When  Francis  I.,  returning  from  captivity  in 
Madrid,  crossed  the  Bidassoa,  and  found  himself  free 
again  on  the  soil  of  his  kingdom,  he  exclaimed : 
"  Here  I  am,  king  once  more !  I  am  king !  I  am  king 
again ! "  When  Napoleon  had  crossed  the  Rhine, 
he  was  able  to  say,  "  I  am  always  Emperor !  " 

Yes,  he  was  always  Emperor ;  yet  what  gloom  his 
advent  in  the  capital  was  to  call  forth!  This  was 
the  second  time  he  had  abandoned  his  army;  but 
what  a  difference  between  the  return  from  Egypt 
and  the  return  from  Russia !  From  Egypt  he  had 
returned  alone,  but  victorious,  and  his  soldiers  were 
at  Cairo ;  from  Russia  he  returned  alone,  but  his 
army  was  annihilated  and  no  longer  at  Moscow. 
Any  one  else  so  returning  would  have  feared  the 
criticisms  or  the  blame  of  the  populace ;  he  was  re- 
turning to  Paris  as  proud  as  if  he  had  just  signed  a 
glorious  peace,  and  the  Grand  Army  were  following 
his  triumphal  chariot.  The  nearer  he '  drew  to  the 


78  MAE  IE    LOUISE. 


frontier,  the  more  liis  confidence  and  satisfaction 
increased.  The  thought  of  seeing  once  more  his 
wife,  his  son,  his  Palace  of  the  Tuileries,  his  Imperial 
throne,  filled  him  with  rapture.  After  being  washed 
overboard  by  a  terrible  tempest,  he  was  about  to  pace 
the  deck  once  more  and  to  take  the  helm  again. 

All  his  prestige  was  needed  to  diminish  the  dis- 
astrous impression  which  was  produced  by  the  bad 
news  that  had  just  arrived.  He  was  not  to  reach 
Paris  until  the  morning  of  December  18,  and  no  one 
expected  him,  when,  on  the  morning  of  the  17th, 
there  was  published  in  the  Moniteur  the  29th  bul- 
letin, which  announced  many  of  the  catastrophes.  It 
came  like  a  thunderbolt.  For  nearly  three  weeks  no 
word  had  been  received  from  the  army.  The  28th 
bulletin,  the  last  that  had  been  received,  had  been 
published  in  the  official  sheet,  November  29,  and 
as  we  have  seen,  it  was  full  of  exaggerated  op- 
timism. Since  then  nothing  had  been  heard.  Judge, 
then,  of  the  universal  stupefaction  when  the  29th 
bulletin  burst  upon  them  like  a  funeral  knell !  He 
owned  to  the  loss  of  more  than  thirty  thousand 
horses  in  a  few  days,  the  melancholy  condition  of 
the  dismounted  cavalry,  of  the  artillery,  and  of  the 
train.  He  said :  "  Men  whom  nature  had  not  made 
sturdy  enough  to  rise  superior  to  all  the  chances  of 
fate  and  fortune,  seemed  overwhelmed ;  they  lost 
their  gaiety  and  good-humor,  and  thought  of  nothing 
but  woe  and  disaster  ;  those  whom  it  made  of  sterner 
stuff  preserved  their  cheerfulness  and  habitual  com- 


THE   EMPEROR'S    RETURN.  79 

posure,  seeing  new  glory  to  be  won  in  almost  insur- 
mountable difficulties."  The  bulletin  confessed  that 
the  Cossacks, "  that  contemptible  cavalry  which  simply 
makes  a  noise,  and  is  incapable  of  breaking  through 
a  company  of  light  infantry,  was  made  by  circum- 
stances most  formidable."  While  omitting  much,  he 
announced  the  crossing  of  the  Beresina,  and  closed 
thus :  "  That  the  army  needs  to  reform  its  discipline, 
to  form  anew,  to  get  new  horses  for  the  cavalry,  the 
artillery,  and  its  baggage  train,  is  evident  from  what 
has  been  said.  Its  first  need  is  rest.  In  all  its  move- 
ments the  Emperor  has  continually  marched  amid 
his  guard ;  the  cavalry  being  commanded  by  the 
Marshal,  the  Duke  of  Istria,  the  infantry  by  the 
Duke  of  Dantzic.  Our  cavalry  was  so  short  of 
horses  that  all  the  officers  who  had  a  single  horse 
had  to  be  collected,  in  order  to  make  four  companies 
of  one  hundred  and  fifty  men  each.  Generals  served 
as  captains ;  colonels  as  uncommissioned  officers.  This 
sacred  squadron,  commanded  by  General  Grouchy, 
and  under  the  orders  of  the  King  of  Naples,  never  lost 
sight  of  the  Emperor  in  all  his  movements.  His 
Majesty's  health  was  never  better." 

In  this  famous  bulletin  there  certainly  prevailed  a 
tone  of  frankness  which  was  not  without  grandeur, 
and  it  lent  the  figure  of  the  Emperor,  in  better  health 
than  ever  amid  so  many  trials,  an  epic  and  majestic 
air ;  yet  Napoleon's  adversaries,  especially  the  Royal- 
ists, reproached  him  with  it  most  bitterly.  Chateau- 
briand thus  speaks  of  it  in  his  MS  moires  cC  outre 


80  MARIE  LOUISE. 


tombe  :  "  Bonaparte  was  always  guarded  by  a  sacred 
battalion  which  never  lost  sight  of  him  in  all  his 
movements,  in  compensation  for  the  three  hundred 
thousand  men  slain;  but  why  had  not  nature  tem- 
pered them  finely  enough  ?  Then  they  would  have 
preserved  their  usual  appearance.  Did  this  vile  meat 
for  cannon  deserve  to  have  its  movements  watched 
as  preciously  as  those  of  His  Majesty  ?  This  bulletin, 
like  many  others,  ends  thus :  c  His  Majesty's  health 
was  never  better.'  Families,  dry  your  tears  !  Napo- 
leon is  well !  After  this  report  there  appeared  in  the 
papers  this  official  remark :  '  This  is  an  historic  utter- 
ance of  the  highest  rank.  Xenophon  and  Csesar  thus 
wrote,  one  his  Retreat  of  the  Ten  Thousand,  the 
other  his  Commentaries.'  What  madness  of  pedantic 
allusion !  We  had  sunk  to  the  contemptuous  scorn 
of  a  flattery  which  exhumed  memories  of  Xenophon 
and  Csesar  in  order  to  insult  the  eternal  grief  of 
France." 

M.  de  Montesquieu  reached  Paris  the  night  of 
December  17.  He  had  left  the  Emperor  on  the  2d, 
the  date  of  the  despatches  he  was  carrying  to  the 
Empress,  and  since  then  had  heard  nothing  from  him. 
Hence  he  could  give  Marie  Louise  only  very  meagre 
information,  and  no  one  knew  where  Napoleon  was, 
or  when  he  would  return  to  the  capital.  This  abso- 
lute uncertainty,  added  to  the  gloom  produced  by 
the  29th  bulletin,  arroused  widespread  uneasiness, 
Meanwhile  the  Emperor  continued  his  journey  with- 
out an  obstacle.  On  his  way  through  Weimar  he 


THE    EMPEROR'S    RETURN.  81 

borrowed  the  carriage  of  his  Minister,  M.  de  Saiut- 
Aignan,  and  pushed  on  through  Hanau  and  Mayence 
without  being  recognized.  At  a  short  distance  from 
Paris,  his  carriage  having  met  with  a  slight  accident, 
he  took  a  post-chaise,  which  brought  him  swiftly 
the  rest  of  the  way. 

December  18,  at  half-past  eleven  at  night,  Marie 
Louise,  sad  and  ailing,  had  just  gone  to  bed  in  the 
Tuileries.  The  lady-in-waiting,  who  was  to  sleep  in 
the  next  room,  was  making  ready  to  lock  all  the 
doors,  when  suddenly  she  heard  the  footsteps  of  two 
men.  Who  could  it  be  at  that  hour  ?  The  drawing- 
room  door  opened,  and  two  men,  wrapped  in  thick 
furs,  made  the  lady  utter  a  cry  of  surprise :  one  was 
the  First  Equerry,  Caulaincourt,  and  the  other  the 
Emperor  himself.  At  first  they  had  been  refused 
admission  to  the  palace,  and  both  had  found  some 
difficulty  in  getting  the  porter  to  recognize  them. 
Marie  Louise,  who  was  suddenly  awakened,  sprang 
out  of  bed,  and  when  she  saw  Napoleon,  embraced 
him  with  delight. 


VI. 

ADULATION. 

ANY  one  but  Napoleon  would  have  been  dis- 
turbed at  the  thought  of  meeting  his  Ministers 
for  the  first  time  after  a  war  which  he  had  been  the 
only  one  to  desire,  and  which  had  ended  so  lament- 
ably. But  he,  so  far  from  feeling  the  slightest  embar- 
rassment, determined  to  assume  their  position  and 
to  appear  as  an  accuser.  Malet's  conspiracy  gave 
him  exactly  the  pretext  that  he  desired.  The  feel- 
ing that  his  presence  inspired  was  mainly  fenr.  His 
attitude,  he  decided,  should  be  what  it  would  have 
been  if  the  Russian  campaign  had  been  one  long 
triumph.  Instead  of  rendering  an  account,  he  meant 
to  demand  one. 

On  his  arrival  at  the  Tuileries,  December  18,  at  half- 
past  eleven  in  the  evening,  the  Emperor  summoned 
the  Princes  holding  high  positions,  the  Ministers,  and 
the  high  officers  of  the  Crown  for  the  next  morning. 
First  he  received  the  Archchancellor  Cambace'r^s, 
then  the  Ministers  in  succession,  according  to  the 
length  of  the  tenure  of  their  offices,  so  that  the  Chief 
Justice  and  all  the  Ministers,  with  the  sole  exception 

82 


ADULATION.  83 


of  the  Minister  of  Commerce,  came  before  Savary, 
Duke  of  Rovigo,  the  Minister  of  Police. 

"  Of  all  who  were  there,"  says  the  Duke  of  Rovigo 
in  his  Memoirs,  "  there  was  not  one  who  would  have 
wished  to  stand  in  my  shoes.  They  all  seemed 
unwilling  to  speak  to  me,  lest  they  should  pain  me. 
The  Emperor  detained  every  Minister,  except  the 
Minister  of  War,  only  a  short  time,  so  that  I  was 
ushered  into  him  very  soon.  When  I  passed  through 
the  crowd  which  had  gathered  about  the  door  of  the 
drawing-room  where  the  Emperor  was,  they  made 
way  for  me  as  if  they  were  letting  a  funeral  proces- 
sion pass  on  its  way  to  bid  farewell  to  the  court. 
What  especially  helped  to  confirm  this  opinion  was 
'the  return  to  Paris  of  the  Duke  of  Otranto,  whom 
the  Emperor  had  recalled  from  Aix  in  Provence, 
where  he  was  living :  every  one  looked  upon  him  as 
my  successor.  Some  who  had  been  my  friends  in 
the  days  of  my  first  success  took  pains  to  let  me 
know  everything  that  was  said  while  I  was  with  the 
Emperor." 

The  Duke  of  Rovigo  remained  nearly  two  hours 
with  his  sovereign.  "  I  can  imagine,"  said  Napoleon, 
"  that  you  might  have  been  arrested  by  fifty  men, 
but  it  is  very  much  to  be  regretted  that  you  should 
not  have  been  able  to  defend  yourself.  As  for  me, 
I  am  at  the  mercy  of  the  first  officer  who  is  on  guard 
at  my  door."  The  Minister  entered  into  long  expla- 
nations, which  the  Emperor  received  very  kindly,  and 
he  soon  saw  with  surprise  and  pleasure  that  he  still 


84  MARIE    LOUISE. 


retained  his  master's  confidence.  "  When  I  left  the 
Emperor,"  he  says,  "it  was  interesting  to  see  the 
curiosity  of  the  courtiers,  who  tried  to  read  in  my 
face  whether  they  should  do  well  to  approach  me. 
However,  they  regarded  the  length  of  our  conversa- 
tion as  a  favorable  sign,  and  it  was  that  evening  (for 
it  was  four  or  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon)  that 
those  ridiculous  rumors  which  had  been  current  about 
me  for  a  month,  came  to  an  end.  Afterwards  I  had 
many  excellent  opportunities  to  make  their  authors 
repent  their  rashness,  but  I  did  nothing  about  it. 
My  friends  returned  when  they  saw  I  was  in  favor ; 
I  received  them  all  without  bearing  malice." 

Although  Napoleon  reached  the  Tuileries  in  the 
evening  of  December  18,  the  Moniteur  of  the  19th' 
made  no  mention  of  his  return.  It  contained,  how- 
ever, the  following  paragraph:  "December  5  the 
Emperor  called  together,  at  headquarters  at  Smor- 
goni,  the  King  of  Naples,  the  Viceroy,  the  Prince  of 
Neufchatel,  and  the  Marshals,  the  Dukes  of  Elchingen, 
of  Dantzic,  of  Treviso,  the  Prince  of  Eckmiihl,  the 
Duke  of  Istria,  and  told  them  he  had  appointed  the 
King  of  Naples  his  lieutenant-general,  to  command 
the  army  during  the  winter.  His  Majesty,  in  pass- 
ing through  Wilna,  accorded  an  interview  of  several 
hours  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano.  His  Majesty  trav- 
elled incognito  in  a  single  sleigh,  under  the  name  of 
the  Duke  of  Vicenza.  He  visited  the  fortification 
of  Praga,  passed  through  Warsaw,  and  spent  several 
hours  there  without  being  recognized.  Two  hours 


ADULATION.  85 


before  his  departure  he  sent  for  Count  Potocki  and 
the  Minister  of  Finance  of  the  Grand  Duchy,  with 
whom  he  conversed  for  a  long  time.  His  Majesty 
reached  Dresden  the  14th,  one  hour  after  midnight, 
and  stayed  with  Count  Serra,  his  Minister.  He  had 
a  long  conversation  with  the  King  of  Saxony,  and 
left  immediately,  by  Leipsic  and  Mayeiice." 

Napoleon's  return  was  thus  announced  in  the  Mon- 
iteur  of  December  20 :  "  Paris,  December  19.  His 
Majesty  the  Emperor  arrived  in  Paris  yesterday 
evening  at  half-past  eleven  o'clock.  He  has  received 
the  Princes  holding  high  positions,  the  Minister,  and 
high  officers.  The  Duke  of  Cadore  has  been  sworn 
in  as  Minister  and  Secretary  of  State  ad  interim  in 
,the  place  of  Count  Daru,  who  remains  until  further 
orders  with  the  army,  as  Commissary  General.  His 
Majesty  has  commissioned  the  Bishop  of  Nantes,  one 
of  his  almoners,  with  the  administration  of  his  chapel, 
in  the  absence  of  the  Grand  Almoner." 

Etiquette  moved  on  with  perfect  regularity ;  Napo- 
leon had  never  seemed  more  calm  and  more  confident. 
At  the  Palace  of  the  Tuileries  one  would  have 
thought  that  the  Russian  campaign  was  nothing  but 
a  bad  dream,  a  nightmare  that  the  day  had  dispelled, 
but  in  the  city  the  distress  and  uneasiness  were  very 
great.  The  Duke  of  Rovigo  says :  "  The  Emperor's 
arrival  in  Paris  completed  the  change  of  public  opin- 
ion. When  once  black  thoughts  began,  imagination 
knew  no  bounds,  and  the  army  was  regarded  as  a 
horde  of  exhausted  and  half-frozen  men,  rather  than 


MARIE    LOUISE. 


as  a  band  of  cohorts,  who  for  so  many  years  had  been 
the  admiration  of  their  contemporaries  and  had  en- 
riched history  with  so  many  glorious  feats." 

The  time  had  come  for  Napoleon  to  display  all  his 
audacity  and  to  seat  himself,  in  proud  majesty,  upon 
his  throne  like  the  Jupiter  of  the  Imperial  Olympus. 
Sunday,  December  20,  at  noon,  he  assembled  in  his 
palace  the  great  bodies  of  the  State,  and  it  was  on 
his  throne  that  he  received  them,  surrounded  by 
Princes,  Cardinals,  Ministers,  the  High  Officers  of  the 
Crown,  and  the  Grand  Eagles  of  the  Legion  of  Honor. 
The  Senate  advanced  first,  introduced  by  the  Grand 
Master  of  Ceremonies,  and  presented  by  His  Most 
Serene  Highness,  the  Prince  Vice-Grand  Elector 
Talleyrand,  former  Bishop  of  Autun,  and  afterwards 
Minister  of  Louis  XVIII. 

Advance,  Senators,  who  in  less  than  sixteen  months 
will  proclaim  your  master's  fall,  who  in  speaking  of 
him  will  pass  all  bounds  in  your  invectives  and  anath- 
emas, you  who  will  be  for  him  perfect  examples  of 
ingratitude  and  insolence  !  Burn  all  the  incense  you 
have  left  1  Bind  together  the  flowers  of  your  servile 
rhetoric  1  You  still  draw  your  pay.  The  gilded 
embroideries  of  your  uniforms  are  still  bright.  So 
long  as  the  lilies  have  not  taken  the  place  of  the 
bees,  be  more  ardent  Imperialists  than  the  Emperor ; 
you  will  soon  be  more  ardent  Royalists  than  the 
King !  You  will  return  to  this  same  palace,  you  will 
bow  before  the  same  throne.  Another  monarch  will 
be  seated  there,  another  flag  will  be  flying  above  the 


ADULATION.  87 


dome.  But  what  does  that  matter?  You  will  not 
have  altered  your  character,  and  you  will  succeed 
under  the  white  flag  through  the  same  qualities  as 
under  the  tricolor.  The  birth  of  the  Duke  of  Bor- 
deaux will  be  for  you  the  same  thing  as  the  birth  of 
the  King  of  Rome.  The  same  language  will  seem  to 
celebrate  the  two  Princes ;  the  same  cradle  will  do 
for  both,  like  the  same  throne. 

The  President  of  the  Senate  began  his  speech  after 
congratulating  the  Emperor  on  his  "happy  arrival 
amid  his  people "  ;  he  went  on :  "  Sire,  while  Your 
Majesty  was  eight  hundred  leagues  from  his  capital, 
at  the  head  of  his  victorious  army,  men,  escaping  from 
the  prisons  where  your  Imperial  clemency  had  saved 
them  from  death,  which  they  merited  for  their  past 
crimes,  tried  to  disturb  the  order  of  this  great  city. 
They  have  suffered  the  penalty  of  their  misdeeds. 
Happy  is  France,  Sire,  in  being  secured  by  its 
monarchic  constitution  from  civil  discords,  from  the 
sanguinary  hatreds  begotten  of  partisanship,  and  from 
the  horrid  disorders  that  follow  in  the  train  of  revo- 
lutions ! " 

There  was  no  need  for  the  Senators  to  wax  indig- 
nant with  General  Malet's  forged  decree  of  the  Senate ; 
the  one  they  voted  April  2,  1814,  certainly  expressed 
no  greater  fidelity  to  the  Emperor.  They  them- 
selves it  was  who  were  to  accuse  Napoleon  of  having 
"  broken  the  compact  which  united  him  to  the  French 
people,  by  levying  taxes  otherwise  than  through  the 
law,  by  unnecessarily  adjourning  the  Legislative 


MARIE    LOUISE. 


Body,  by  illegally  issuing  several  decrees  of  condem- 
nation to  death,  by  annihilating  the  responsibility  of 
the  Ministers,  the  independence  of  the  bench,  and 
the  liberty  of  the  press."  They  were  to  accuse  him 
with  completing  the  misfortunes  of  their  country  "by 
the  abuse  of  all  the  means  entrusted  to  him,  both 
men  and  money,  for  war,  and  his  refusal  to  treat 
on  conditions  which  the  national  interest  required 
him  to  accept."  They  themselves,  the  accomplices 
of  his  faults,  were  to  proclaim  his  fall.  Malet  only 
forestalled  their  feelings,  their  language;  only  they 
did  not  wait  to  be  told  that  the  Emperor  was  dead. 
Malet's  conspiracy  was  not  merely  a  prophecy ;  it  was 
the  exact  programme  of  the  different  revolutions 
still  hidden  in  the  future.  October  23,  1812,  no  one 
gave  a  thought  to  the  King  of  Rome  ;  who,  July  29, 
1830,  was  to  think  of  the  Duke  of  Bordeaux  ?  of  the 
Count  of  Paris,  February  24,  1848?  September  4, 
1870,  of  the  Prince  Imperial  ? 

The  President  of  the  Senate  continued  his  address. 
"  The  Senate,"  he  said,  "  is  the  Emperor's  first  Coun- 
cil ;  its  authority  exists  only  when  the  Monarch  calls 
for  it,  and  sets  it  in  motion ;  it  is  established  for  the 
preservation  of  this  monarchy  and  the  inheritance  of 
your  throne  in  our  fourth  dynasty.  France  and  pos- 
terity will  find  it  always  faithful  to  this  sacred  duty ; 
and  all  its  members  Avill  ever  be  ready  to  die  in 
defence  of  this  palladium  of  the  national  security  and 
prosperity."  Chateaubriand,  commenting  on  this 
passage,  says :  "  The  Senate,  in  presuming  to  con- 


ADULATION.  89 


gratulate  Napoleon  on  the  public  welfare,  is  never- 
theless appalled  at  its  own  courage :  it  fears  even 
to  exist,  and  takes  care  to  say  that  the  authority  of 
the  Senate  exists  only  when  the  sovereign  calls  for 
it  and  sets  it  in  motion.  There  was  so  great  danger 
that  the  Senate  would  be  independent !  " 

Then  followed  lyrical  outbursts  of  enthusiasm. 
"Sire,  Your  Majesty  has  hoisted  the  French  eagles 
on  the  towers  of  Moscow.  The  enemy  was  able  to 
oppose  your  success  and  to  thwart  your  plans  only 
by  having  recourse  to  the  ghastly  measures  of  des- 
potism, by  turning  its  boundaries  into  deserts,  and 
by  giving  to  the  flames  his  capital,  the  centre  of  his 
wealth,  and  the  product  of  many  centuries.  They 
little  know,  Sire,  Your  Majesty's  heart  when  they 
thus  revive  the  barbarous  tactics  of  their  savage 
ancestors.  You  would  gladly  have  renounced  tro- 
phies which  were  to  cost  so  much  human  blood  and 
suffering.  .  .  .  May  Your  Imperial  and  Royal  Maj- 
esty deign  to  accept  this  tribute  of  the  gratitude, 
love,  and  unalterable  fidelity  of  the  Senate  and  of 
the  French  people  !  .  .  .  The  affection  which  the 
whole  nation  bears  for  the  King  of  Rome  proves, 
Sire,  both  the  attachment  of  the  French  for  Your 
Majesty's  family,  and  that  inward  conviction  which 
reassures  every  citizen,  and  shows  him  in  this  august 
child  the  security  of  his  own,  the  safeguard  of  his 
fortunes,  and  an  invincible  obstacle  to  all  civil  agita- 
tions and  political  upheavals,  the  greatest  misfortunes 
that  can  distress  a  people." 


90  MAEIE    LOUISE. 

The  Emperor  replied  to  the  Senators :  "  What  you 
say  is  very  agreeable  to  me.  ...  Our  fathers  had 
adopted  this  rallying  cry :  ;  The  King  is  dead ;  long 
live  the  King !  '  These  few  words  express  the  main 
advantages  of  a  monarchy.  I  think  that  I  have  care- 
fully studied  the  feelings  that  my  people  have  shown 
in  different  ages :  I  have  reflected  on  what  has  been 
done  at  different  epochs  of  our  history,  I  shall  still 
ponder  them.  The  war  I  am  waging  against  Russia 
is  a  political  war.  I  have  carried  it  on  without 
animosity :  I  should  gladly  have  spared  that  country 
the  evils  it  has  inflicted  upon  itself.  I  might  have 
armed  the  greater  part  of  the  population  against  the 
others,  by  proclaiming  the  emancipation  of  the  serfs : 
many  villages  urged  this  upon  me ;  but  when  I  saw 
the  degraded  condition  of  this  large  class  of  the 
Russian  people,  I  refused  to  take  this  step  which 
would  have  consigned  many  families  to  death  and 
to  the  most  awful  torments.  My  army  has  suffered 
losses,  but  these  are  due  to  the  premature  severity 
of  the  winter.  I  accept  the  expression  of  your  feel- 
ings." 

One  would  have  said,  to  hear  the  Emperor,  that 
the  retreat  from  Russia  was  merely  an  unimportant 
episode  in  the  vast  romance  of  his  career.  To  the 
terrible  catastrophes  which  had  practically  wiped  out 
his  army,  he  referred  only  with  these  few  words, 
"My  army  has  suffered  losses."  Of  his  own  blun- 
ders, his  own  imprudence,  his  refusal  of  the  advice 
of  all  who  knew  the  geography,  the  character,  the 


ADULATION.  91 


climate  of  Russia,  he  said  not  a  word.  The  Council 
of  State,  with  even  more  fulsome  flattery  than  the 
Senate,  went  into  raptures  over  "the  prodigious 
development  of  an  august  character  which  was 
greater  than  ever."  What  was  his  reply  ?  He  talked 
—  strange  as  it  may  seem  —  about  ideology.  "It  is 
to  ideology,  the  science  of  ideas,  to  that  obscure 
metaphysical  speculation,  that  study  of  the  obscure 
first  causes,  which  busies  itself  with  establishing  the 
foundations  of  legislation  rather  than  with  adopting 
laws  in  accordance  with  our  knowledge  of  the  human 
heart  and  with  the  lessons  of  history,  that  we  must 
attribute  the  misfortunes  that  have  befallen  France. 
These  errors  necessarily  introduced  the  reign  of  the 
men  of  blood.  In  fact,  who  announced  the  principle 
of  insurrection  as  a  duty?  Who  flattered  the  people 
by  announcing  a  sovereignty  which  it  was  incapable 
of  exercising?  Who  destroyed  the  sanctity  and  the 
respect  of  laws  by  making  them  dependent,  not  on 
the  sacred  principles  of  justice,  on  the  nature  of 
things,  and  on  civil  justice,  but  merely  on  the  will 
of  an  assembly  composed  of  men  ignorant  of  civil, 
criminal,  administrative,  political,  and  military  laws  ? 
When  one  is  called  upon  to  regenerate  a  state,  it 
is  the  opposite  principles  that  should  be  followed." 
Why  did  not  Napoleon  impeach,  instead  of  innocent 
ideology,  the  guilty  winter,  the  author  of  most  of  the 
disasters  of  the  Russian  war,  and  charge  it  with  high 
treason  ? 

The  time  was  set ;  the  official  flattery  was  to  grow 


92  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


in  obsequiousness,  and  Napoleon  was  never  to  tire  of 
the  incense  burned  before  him.  Instead  of  thinking 
of  mournful  subjects,  some  great  solemnity,  some 
magnificent  splendor,  was  called  for,  such  as  the  cor- 
onation of  the  Empress  and  of  the  King  of  Rome. 
That,  said  the  courtiers,  will  be  a  fine  opportunity  for 
France  to  express  its  devotion  and  loyalty  to  the 
Imperial  dynasty  :  the  Emperor  had  but  to  go  to  the 
capital;  there  he  would  hear  nothing  but  applause. 
December  27,  in  the  Throne  Room  of  the  Tuileries, 
he  received  a  deputation  of  the  electoral  college  of 
the  Department  of  the  Tiber,  and  the  President  spoke 
in  these  high-flown  terms :  "  The  Romans  will  not 
belie  the  name  of  their  ancestors;  and  while  some 
shall  fight  beneath  victorious  banners,  others  shall 
cultivate  the  arts  in  order  to  make  eternal,  by  majestic 
monuments,  your  glorious  exploits,  and  to  transmit 
their  memory  to  the  remotest  posterity.  Sire,  to 
crown  the  happiness  of  the  city  of  Rome,  }^ou  have 
only  to  honor  it  with  your  presence  and  to  permit  it 
to  behold  you  seated  on  a  throne  reared  in  the  Palace 
of  the  Caesars.  In  that  shrine  you  will  hear  unend- 
ing applause  ;  there  you  will  see  the  famous  monu- 
ments, rescued  from  the  ravages  of  time,  which  your 
munificence  has  restored  to  the  fine  arts.  The 
Romans  will  bind  your  brow  with  undying  laurel, 
and  your  entrance  into  the  capital  will  be  the  most 
solemn,  the  best  applauded,  and  the  most  deserved  of 
your  triumphs.  It  will  efface  the  vaunted  ovations 
of  ancient  warriors,  of  the  most  illustrious  emperors. 


ADULATION.  93 


Deign,  Sire,  to  accept  and  to  appreciate  the  unani- 
mous wishes  of  the  city  of  Rome  and  of  its  depart- 
ment which  we  have  been  commissioned  to  lay  on 
the  steps  of  your  throne." 

Paris  and  the  Eternal  City  tried  to  outdo  each 
other  in  adulation.  After  the  Roman  delegate,  the 
Prefect  of  the  Seine  made  his  address :  "  What  joy, 
Sire,  the  presence  of  your  sacred  person  imparts  to 
every  heart !  What  hope  and  security  it  inspires  ! 
Your  glances  everywhere  give  life  ;  and  then  what 
glory  during  your  absence  !  Our  wishes,  our  homage, 
our  admiration,  followed  Your  Majesty's  footsteps  as 
he  flew  from  victory  to  victory,  planting  his  eagles  on 
the  turrets  of  Moscow,  and  in  those  even  more  glorious 
moments  when  he  manifested  how  even  against  the 
fury  of  the  elements  could  prevail  that  constancy, 
that  firmness  of  soul,  which  have  won  for  him  the 
proudest  triumph  that  it  could  be  granted  to  mortals 
to  attain ! " 

The  evening  of  December  27,  1812,  the  day  when 
he  had  listened  to  these  two  addresses  in  the  Throne 
Room,  the  Emperor  went  to  the  opera  with  the  Em- 
press and  saw  a  performance  of  Jerusalem  Delivered. 
The  audience  was  very  large,  and,  according  to  the 
Moniteur,  the  two  sovereigns  were  greeted  with  most 
enthusiastic  applause. 

Constant,  his  valet  de  chambre,  says  in  his  Memoirs  : 
"  I  took  my  old  place  in  the  Emperor's  service,  and 
found  him  exactly  as  he  was  before  he  left  for  the 
campaign ;  his  face  was  precisely  as  serene ;  one 


94  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


would  have  said  that  the  past  was  of  no  importance 
in  his  eyes,  and  that  living  already  in  the  future  he 
saw  victory  again  perched  upon  his  banners,  and  his 
enemies  humiliated  and  defeated  ...  A  few  days 
after  I  arrived  in  Paris,  Their  Majesties  went  to  the 
opera,  where  the  Jerusalem  Delivered  was  given.  I 
was  an  eye-witness  of  the  way  the  Emperor  and 
Empress  were  received.  I  never  saw  greater  enthu- 
siasm, and  I  must  say  that  it  seemed  to  me  a  very 
sudden  transition  from  the  recent  crossing  of  the 
Beresina  to  such  a  magical  performance." 

The  illusion  was  complete.  Just  as  in  the  last 
days  of  royalty,  a  few  months  before  the  murder  of 
Louis  XVI.,  the  King  and  Queen  were  received  with 
an  outburst  of  enthusiasm  in  the  brilliant  Opera 
House,  so,  after  the  Russian  campaign,  a  few  months 
before  the  invasion,  before  the  deposition,  Napoleon 
and  Marie  Louise  received  in  public,  at  the  theatre, 
a  welcome  as  warm  as  those  of  the  most  brilliant 
evenings  of  1810  and  1811.  There  was  the  same 
brilliant  spectacle,  the  same  glory ;  but,  alas  !  the 
power  and  splendor  of  the  Empire  were  about  to 
vanish  like  a  scene  of  the  opera  itself.  Other  per- 
sons were  soon  to  come  upon  the  stage.  Everything 
was  changed  in  a  moment,  as  if  at  the  machinist's 
whistle. 

Nevertheless  Napoleon  was  able  to  deceive  himself. 
He  had  found  all  again,  —  his  wife,  his  son,  the  throne, 
his  palace,  the  courtiers.  But  the  artificial  world  in 
which  he  lived,  surrounded  with  flattery  as  in  the 


ADULATION.  95 


most  brilliant  periods  of  his  career,  was  not  the  real, 
suffering,  weeping  France.  And  outside  of  France 
there  was  Europe,  which  was  impatiently  gnawing 
its  bit,  awaiting  the  terrible  hour  of  a  general  upris- 
ing. Every  wise  observer  was  sure  that  terrible 
convulsions  were  approaching.  To  prevent  them 
there  was  demanded  infinite  wisdom,  and  wisdom 
was  just  what  this  exceptional  man  most  lacked ;  for 
his  superabundant  genius  did  not  possess  the  good 
sense  which  was  required  as  a  balance.  Napoleon 
needed  counsellors  :  he  listened  only  to  flatterers. 


VII. 

THE   END   OF    1812. 

WHILE  Napoleon  had  found  once  more  his  cour- 
tiers at  the  Tuileries,  and  had  been  greeted 
by  them  as  if  he  were  triumphant,  what  had  become 
of  the  Grand  Army?  The  day  after  his  departure 
the  weather  had  become  even  worse ;  snowflakes 
filled  the  air;  birds  fell  to  the  ground  frozen  stiff: 
it  seemed  as  if  nature,  paralyzed  and  motionless,  had 
ceased  to  live.  "  Then,"  says  General  de  Se*gur, 
"  no  one  spoke,  no  one  murmured ;  the  absolute 
silence  of  despair  prevailed,  broken  only  by  sounds 
of  weeping.  Unhappy  shades  seemed  alone  to  glide 
about  in  this  realm  of  death.  The  dull  monotony 
of  our  footfalls,  the  creaking  of  the  snow,  and  the 
faint  moans  of  the  dying,  alone  disturbed  this  vast 
and  lamentable  silence.  There  was  no  anger,  no 
cursing,  nothing  which  supposes  that  any  warmth 
was  left ;  there  scarcely  survived  sufficient  strength 
to  pray :  most  fell  without  complaining,  whether  from 
weakness  and  resignation,  or  because  complaints  imply 
the  hope  of  relief  or  sympathy."  And  the  brave 
general  who  wrote  this  account,  which  is  as  epical 
96 


THE    END    OF   1812.  97 

as  the  song  of  Roland,  exclaims  in  patriotic  anguish : 
"  This  was  the  army  that  had  sallied  forth  from  the 
most  civilized  nation  in  Europe,  the  army  once  so 
brilliant  and  victorious  over  the  enemy  until  its  last 
moment,  and  whose  name  still  ruled  over  many  con- 
quered capitals.  Its  bravest  warriors,  who  had  just 
crossed  the  field  of  many  of  its  victories,  had  lost 
their  noble  bearing.  The  men,  clad  only  in  rags, 
with  feet  bare  and  bleeding,  dragged  themselves 
along  on  branches  of  pine,  and  all  the  strength  and 
perseverance  they  had  shown  in  conquering,  they 
now  employed  in  flight." 

Their  confusion  was  complete ;  the  regiments  had 
lost  their  formation;  the  men  retained  neither  the 
arms  nor  the  uniforms  of  soldiers ;  they  were  unable 
to  face  any  other  enemy  than  hunger  and  cold ;  no 
one  thought  of  anything  but  his  own  safety :  bands 
of  eight  or  ten  combined  to  plunder  together.  These 
little  bands  being  themselves  broken  up  by  their 
sufferings,  a  crowd  of  starving  men  would  rush  upon 
a  dying  horse  to  eat  it.  Such  continual  scenes  of 
horror  and  desolation  met  the  survivors  of  the  retreat 
at  every  step.  When,  December  13,  they  reached 
the  Niemen,  which  they  had  crossed  six  months  be- 
fore under  a  bright  sky,  numbering  four  hundred  thou- 
sand men,  with  sixty  thousand  cavalry,  and  twelve 
hundred  cannon,  in  all  the  pride  of  power  and  glory, 
the  comparison  of  that  brilliant  scene  with  their 
present  misery  made  even  these  veterans  weep.  In- 
stead of  three  French  bridges,  brought  five  hundred 


98        '  MARIE   LOUISE. 


leagues  and  thrown  across  the  river  with  the  boldest 
promptness,  there  was  now  but  one  bridge  —  a  Rus- 
sian one.  This  was  used  by  the  remains  of  the  Grand 
Army.  Musket  in  hand,  Marshal  Ney,  at  the  head 
of  a  hundred  brave  men,  defended  it  to  the  last 
moment,  and  was  the  last  to  leave  the  fatal  land. 
In  spite  of  their  terrible  sufferings,  Napoleon's  sol- 
diers still  had  so  great  a  reputation  that  the  enemy, 
as  if  astonished  at  their  success,  which  was  due  to 
the  winter,  advanced  no  further  than  to  the  banks 
of  the  Niemen. 

There  were  some  men  whose  prodigious  courage 
was  not  shaken  for  a  moment  by  their  fearful  suffer- 
ings. Marshal  Davout  wrote,  December  12,  to  his 
wife :  "  I  take  advantage,  my  dear  Aimee,  of  the 
departure  of  a  courier,  to  reassure  you  regarding 
your  Louis's  health,  which  is  excellent  in  spite  of  the 
inclemency  of  the  season.  You  will  notice  that 
my  hand  trembles  as  I  write;  I  swear  to  you  that 
the  cold  is  the  only  reason,  and  that  I  feel  it  all 
the  more  because  I  am  writing  in  the  open  air,  so  as 
not  to  lose  the  courier."  He  wrote  again,  December 
17 :  "  Everywhere  the  Russians  have  been  beaten, 
and  when  the  army  has  rested  a  little,  they  will  meet 
their  conqueror  again.  The  conduct  of  the  troops 
is  excellent ;  not  a  murmur  is  to  be  heard.  It  seems 
as  if  the  humblest  soldier  felt  that  no  force,  no 
genius,  could  overcome  the  harm  the  weather  has 
inflicted."  And  December  24 :  "  We  must  soon  hear 
of  the  Emperor's  safe  arrival  in  Paris.  This  news 


THE    END    OF   1812.  99 

will  be  agreeable  to  every  Frenchman,  and  especially 
to  his  soldiers;  with  him  in  France,  the  harm  that 
the  unexpected  and  unprecedented  cold  has  done, 
will  be  soon  repaired."  Yet  there  was  a  limit  to 
human  strength;  the  retreat  could  not  have  lasted 
many  days  more.  Even  those  whose  spirit  was  not 
broken  for  a  moment,  were  physically  exhausted ; 
and  Marshal  Davout  himself,  prodigy  of  heroism  .as 
he  was,  wrote  to  his  wife  from  Thorn,  December  23 : 
44  It  was  high  time,  my  dear  wife,  for  me  to  arrive. 
I  hope  a  few  days'  rest  will  set  me  on  my  legs  again, 
especially  as  my  weakness  is  due  to  nothing  but 
fatigue.  I  never  could  have  believed  that  I  was  so 
strong :  I  have  certainly  come  four-fifths  of  the  way 
from  Moscow  on  foot." 

Towards  the  end  of  December,  the  letters  from  the 
officers  and  men  of  the  Grand  Army  began  to  arrive 
in  France  after  a  long  interruption.  There  is  this 
justice  to  be  rendered  to  the  Imperial  government, 
that  it  did  not  intercept  one  of  them,  and  that  the  sur- 
vivors of  the  retreat  were  free  to  describe  with  perfect 
frankness  the  disasters  they  had  just  experienced. 
I  ask  for  no  other  proof  of  this  than  this  letter  from 
my  father,  who  died  a  general,  and,  during  the  Rus- 
sian campaign,  was  serving  as  captain  in  Marshal 
Davout's  corps :  — 

"Konigsberg,  December  21,  1812.  MY  DEAR 
AUNT:  I  am  willing  to  bet  that  since  I  learned  to 
write,  not  one  of  my  letters  has  ever  given  you  so 
much  pleasure  as  you  will  get  from  this  one.  For  a 


100  MARIE    LOUISE. 


long  time  you  must  have  been  in  most  painful  uncer- 
tainty about  me,  and  I  need  not  tell  you  that  it  has 
been  impossible  to  send  you  a  line  from  a  country 
where  there  were  no  mails,  houses,  or  inhabitants. 
Doubtless  you  know  that  I  have  come  from  a  vast 
desert  which  contains  nothing  but  snow,  ashes,  and 
corpses.  From  the  Niemen  to  Moscow,  every  village 
was  burned  without  a  single  exception.  We  had  to 
cross  this  region  again  to  get  from  Moscow  here. 
When  we  began  the  war,  we  had  a  hundred  regiments 
of  cavalry.  All  the  horses  are  dead  and  have  been 
devoured  by  the  remains  of  a  famished  army.  I 
should  have  to  write  a  hundred  pages  to  tell  you  all 
we  have  suffered.  Since  the  world  began  there  has 
never  been  such  a  war.  We  have  had  to  fight  against 
cannon,  fire,  famine,  and  water.  Among  the  few 
survivors  it  Would  be  hard  to  find  one  whose  nose, 
feet,  or  ears  have  not  been  frozen ;  but,  thanks  to  my 
good  luck,  I  got  here  whole,  and  in  excellent  health, 
except  a  heavy  cold  from  which  every  one  is  suffer- 
ing: this  is  not  strange,  considering  that  for  seven 
months  we  have  had  to  sleep  in  the  open  air,  in  good 
and  bad  weather,  in  a  country  where  in  November 
the  thermometer  fell  to  24°  F. 

"  I  encountered  unheard-of  dangers  at  the  battle  of 
Moskowa,  September  7 :  for  ten  hours  I  was  in  con- 
tinual peril.  All  my  friends  were  shot  down  by  my 
side.  November  28,  at  the  crossing  of  the  Beresina, 
I  was  also  terribly  exposed ;  my  only  way  of  escape 
was  to  leap  with  my  horse  into  the  river ;  the  cakes 


THE    END    OF   1812.  101 

of  ice  carried  him  away,  and  I  saved  myself  by  swim- 
ming, all  dressed  and  armed  as  I  was.  The  bridge 
was  blocked  and  the  river  was  full  of  bodies. 

"  December  13,  at  midnight,  I  was  taken  prisoner 
with  four  officers  of  my  regiment.  I  am  the  only  one 
of  the  five  who  succeeded  in  escaping.  After  run- 
ning for  an  hour  through  the  snow,  which  was  up  to 
my  knees,  across  ditches  and  palisades,  and  falling 
seven  or  eight  times,  I  was  out  of  breath,  like  a  stag 
pursued  by  hounds.  Then  a  dozen  Cossacks,  who 
had  been  pursuing  me,  caught  up  to  me,  and  took 
my  cloak,  cartridge-box,  epaulettes,  cross,  money, 
watch,  in  short,  everything  I  had  on,  except  my 
trousers.  They  were  so  greedy  over  the  spoils,  that 
of  all  those  things  not  one  was  left  whole.  I  suffered 
from  their  excessive  haste  in  stripping  me,  but  other- 
wise I  have  no  cause  to  complain  of  their  treatment. 
When  that  operation  was  finished,  they  carried  me 
away  with  a  considerable  band  of  prisoners,  and  they 
doubtless  would  have  sent  me  to  Siberia,  to  end  my 
days  there,  if  I  could  have  got  so  far ;  but  Providence, 
who  has  always  aided  me  in  peril,  favored  me  once 
more.  I  took  advantage  of  a  moment  when  my 
guards  were  more  occupied  with  their  booty  than 
with  their  prisoners,  and  by  running  like  a  madman, 
managed  to  get  to  the  Niemen,  which  was  only  a 
quarter  of  a  league  away.  When  I  got  there,  since 
it  was  frozen,  I  hid  in  the  reeds.  I  nearly  froze 
myself.  I  was  half  naked,  and  I  needed  all  my 
courage,  which  never  left  me  for  a  moment.  At 


102  MARIE    LOUISE. 


daybreak  when  I  was  able  to  see  where  I  was,  and 
to  look  about  me,  I  started  through  some  woods, 
and  by  dint  of  scurrying  on  managed  to  rejoin  the  rear- 
guard ;  there  I  found  some  friends  who  lent  me  some 
money  and  covered  me  with  a  ragged  cloak  with 
which  I  reached  Konigsberg.  Of  all  the  horses, 
uniforms,  and  luggage  of  all  kinds,  of  which  I  had 
more  than  four  thousand  francs'  worth  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  campaign,  I  have  nothing  left  but  one 
pocket-handkerchief.  So  I  have  had  to  supply  myself 
with  headdress,  boots,  epaulettes,  cartridge-box,  arms, 
uniform,  linen,  horses,  etc.,  and  I  have  not  a  penny. 
So  you  see  I  am  in  a  more  embarrassing  position  than 
when  I  received  my  commission,  because  then  I  had 
at  least  a  coat  on  my  back,  while  now  I  find  myself 
in  the  condition  I  was  in,  November  30,  1788,  when 
my  mother's  monthly  nurse  carried  me  to  the  fire. 

"I  am  now  going  to  tell  you  a  most  interesting 
piece  of  news.  Since  October  11,  I  have  had  the 
cross,  so  that  now  I  am  an  old  knight  of  the  Legion 
of  Honor;  you  may  judge  how  gratifying  that  is. 
The  delight  it  gave  me  has  all  passed  away ;  I  have 
suffered  so  much  since  then  that  the  charm  of 
novelty  is  gone ;  I  am  indeed  terribly  melancholy. 
I  have  lost  all  my  best  friends ;  their  death  has  been 
so  tragic  that  my  whole  life  will  be  saddened.  I 
have  seen  too  many  horrors  ever  to  forget  them." 

The  families  that  were  in  receipt  of  letters  like 
that  were  sad ;  but  how  much  sadder  those  that  could 
receive  none !  How  many  were  absent !  for  that  is 


THE    END    OF    1812.  103 

what  the  dead  were  called  in  official  language.  The 
lists  were  long  of  the  innumerable  absences  published 
every  day  in  the  official  announcements  of  the  Moni- 
teur.  France,  so  long  accustomed  to  triumph,  was 
overwhelmed  by  its  defeats.  The  winter  had  been 
exceptionally  severe  even  in  Paris.  If  there  was 
suffering  in  comfortable,  well-warmed  apartments, 
with  abundance  of  nutritious  food,  and  thick  clothes, 
what  must  have  been  the  tortures  of  the  unhappy 
soldiers  amid  blood-stained  snowdrifts?  Every  one 
was  moved  by  immense  compassion. 

There  was  another  feeling,  which  was  quite  as 
general,  —  the  desire  for  peace.  The  Senate  had  not 
dared  to  say  the  word,  but  it  was  in  every  one's 
heart.  Every  one  yearned  for  peace,  except  one  man, 
and  that  man  was  the  Emperor.  While  the  suffering 
and  exhausted  people  cared  for  nothing  but  rest,  he 
was  thinking  of  nothing  but  conscription,  armies, 
plans  of  campaign,  strategic  marches,  battles,  revenge. 
The  Emperor  of  Austria,  on  the  other  hand,  who  was 
still  sincere  in  his  paternal  interest  for  the  Napo- 
leonic dynasty,  was  above  all  things  desirous  of  peace 
and  reconciliation ;  and  if  Napoleon  had  accepted 
his  father-in-law's  views  and  had  frankly  consented 
to  a  few  concessions  of  territory,  which  had  become 
indispensable,  he  would  certainly  have  preserved  the 
Austrian  and  possibly  the  Prussian  alliance. 

It  would  not  be  fair  to  say  that  at  this  moment 
the  Emperor  Francis  was  deceiving  his  son-in-law. 
Since  the  beginning  of  December  the  Cabinet  of 


104  MARIE    LOUISE. 


Vienna  had  made  known  its  programme  which  could 
be  named  in  one  word,  —  pacification.  M.  de  Floret, 
First  Secretary  of  the  Austrian  Embassy  at  Paris, 
was  sent  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano,  Minister  of  Foreign 
Affairs,  who  was  still  at  Wilna,  where  Napoleon  had 
made  him  stay  during  the  war.  M.  de  Floret  was 
bearer  of  this  despatch  from  the  Count  Metter- 
nich :  — 

"  Vienna,  December  9,  1812  .  There  are  moments 
and  events  which  decide  the  fate  of  empires  as 
that  of  individuals.  At  such  times,  illusions  are 
fatal;  one  must  face  the  truth,  however  painful  it 
may  be.  The  attempt  to  bring  Russia  to  terms,  from 
the  centre  of  its  wilds,  has  failed.  I  will  say  nothing 
of  what  ought  to  have  been  done  ;  we  think  too  highly 
of  the  first  general  of  our  century  to  presume  to  criti- 
cise his  military  operations.  .  .  .  The  effect  produced 
by  the  first  unsuccessful  undertaking  of  Napoleon 
upon  all  the  nations  of  Europe  is  none  the  less  incal- 
culable. It  is  in  view  of  this  circumstance  that  I 
must  beg  you  to  ask  the  Duke  of  Bassano  to  pay  the 
greatest  attention  to  the  calculations  and  opinions  of 
the  Minister  of  the  power  most  capable  of  judging 
this  important  question.  He  addressed  him  with 
perfect  frankness ;  we  are  more  directly  called  upon 
because  the  proofs  of  the  most  loyal  and  political  are 
wholly  in  our  favor.  I  do  not  make  a  hasty  state- 
ment when  I  aver  that  Austria  alone,  by  the  calm 
and  imperturbable  firmness  of  her  attitude,  restrains 
fifty  millions  of  men  who  are  ready  to  rise. 


THE    END    OF   1812.  105 

"However  difficult  a  general  peace  may  appear,  it  is 
doubtless  easier  —  granted  that  the  Emperor  of  the 
French  desires  it  —  than  a  separate  arrangement. 
The  only  European  power  that  is  called  on  to  speak 
first  of  this  eminently  desirable  peace  is  Austria. 
We  hold  this  conviction  as  a  strong  and  central 
power.  We  should  acquire  it,  if  we  did  not  already 
hold  it,  from  the  attempts  of  every  sort  which  are 
made  by  the  powers  at  war  with  France,  to  persuade 
us  to  abandon  our  present  alliance.  The  Emperor 
Francis  alone  can  use  to  France,  England,  and  Rus- 
sia a  language,  compromising  neither  the  self-respect 
of  rival  and  hostile  governments,  nor  the  national 
feelings  of  the  people. 

"  The  ties  of  blood  which  unite  the  two  Imperial 
houses  of  France  and  Austria  give  an  especial  char- 
acter to  every  step  taken  by  our  august  master. 
Undertaken  by  any  other  power,  such  steps  would 
fail  to  appear  as  disinterested,  and  as  favorable  to  the 
French  sovereign  as  are  those  of  Austria.  The 
Emperor  Francis  is  interested,  not  merely  in  the 
maintenance,  but  also  in  the  well-being  of  the  new 
dynasty  reigning  in  France,  —  a  consideration  without 
weight  with  the  other  powers.  The  Emperor  of  the 
French  seems  to  have  foreseen  what  has  happened  at 
this  moment,  when  he  said  to  me  so  often,  that  his 
marriage  had  altered  the  face  of  things  in  Europe. 
The  time  is  approaching,  it  has  perhaps  come,  when 
the  Emperor  Napoleon  may  derive  real  profit  from 
this  alliance." 


106  MARIE   LOUISE. 


Metternich's  despatch  ends  thus:  "Our  august 
master,  when  he  heard  of  the  evacuation  of  Moscow, 
expressed  in  a  few  words  the  basis  of  his  sentiments 
and  of  his  policy.  'The  time  has  come,'  he  said, 
'when  I  can  prove  to  the  Emperor  of  the  French 
who  I  am.'  I  simply  give  you  these  words  of  His 
Imperial  Majesty,  and  authorize  you  to  quote  them 
to  the  Duke  of  Bassano :  they  would  only  be  injured 
by  any  commentary." 

The  Emperor  of  Austria  tried  to  gain  additional 
weight  to  his  proposition  by  a  personal  letter  to  his 
son-in-law,  which  ran  as  follows :  — 

"Vienna,  December  20,  1812.  MY  BROTHER  AND 
VERY  DEAR  SON-IN-LAW:  I  was  on  the  point  of 
sending  the  .Count  of  Bubna  to  Dresden  when  I 
received  the  letter  which  your  Imperial  Majesty 
kindly  sent  hither.  Consequently  I  have  modified 
this  officer's  instructions,  and  he  will  have  the  honor 
of  handing  you  this  letter.  The  course  of  events 
has  occupied  me  painfully  for  many  weeks.  I  flatter 
myself  that  Your  Majesty  will  have  gathered  from 
the  communications  that  I  had  presented  to  him 
through  my  charge  d'affaires  at  Wilna,  the  convic- 
tion of  the  continual  interest  I  feel  in  him.  They 
will  also  show  my  way  of  judging  the  state  of 
affairs,  and  what  are  my  wishes.  These  have  no 
other  aim  than  Your  Majesty's  well-being  —  to  which 
I  am  personally  attached  by  the  most  sacred  bond  — 
and  no  other  motive  than  the  greatest  good  of  our 
peoples.  It  is  to  me  a  matter  of  the  greatest  interest 


THE    END    OF   1812.  107 

to  know  thoroughly  Your  Majesty's  plans,  which 
have  so  direct  an  influence  upon  the  future,  that  I 
cannot  hesitate  to  beg  you  to  explain  them  with  all 
the  frankness  of  friendship.  You  can  readily  under- 
stand how  much  I  am  interested  in  the  fate  of  the 
brave  army  which  I  have  added  to  your  own,  and 
what  must  be  my  anxiety  for  the  safety  of  my  most 
exposed  provinces.  General  Bubna  has  orders  to 
rejoin  me  at  the  earliest  possible  moment.  I  am 
engaged  in  selecting  the  man  whom  I  shall  com- 
mission to  represent  me  with  Your  Majesty  until  the 
return  of  the  Prince  of  Schwarzenberg.  Accept  the 
assurances  of  the  sincere  attachment,  and  of  the  high 
regard  with  which  I  am,  my  brother,  Your  Imperial 
Majesty's  affectionate  brother  and  father-in-law, 

"  FKAKCIS." 

General  Bubna,  who  reached  Paris  towards  the 
end  of  December,  carried,  besides  the  letter  of  the 
Emperor  of  Austria  to  Napoleon,  another  letter  from 
him  to  his  daughter ;  a  letter  in  which  he  expressed 
his  wishes  for  an  early  peace.  Marie  Louise  answered, 
sending  her  father  good  wishes  for  the  new  year,  and 
a  present  of  a  porcelain  breakfast  service  adorned 
with  views  of  all  the  Imperial  palaces  of  France'. 
"  May  Heaven  grant,"  she  said  in  her  letter,  "  the 
fulfilment  of  your  wishes,  and  that  we  may  soon  have 
peace !  "  A  few  days  later  she  wrote  to  her  father : 
"  May  Heaven  grant  that  the  Emperor  shall  not  leave 
me !  The  thought  of  his  departure  terrifies  me  after 
all  the  anguish  I  endured  last  year.  ...  I  share  your 


108  MARIE    LOUISE. 


desire  to  see  soon  a  long  peace,  for  I  don't  dare  to 
think  of  the  moment  when  my  husband  shall  return 
to  the  battle-field." 

Marie  Louise  was  very  anxious  for  peace.  She 
desired  it  for  herself,  for  her  husband,  for  her  son, 
for  her  father,  for  her  two  countries,  France  and  Aus- 
tria. The  Countess  of  Montesquiou,  the  governess 
of  the  King  of  Rome,  added  these  words  to  the  prayer 
which  the  Prince  Imperial  repeated  every  evening  be- 
fore going  to  sleep :  "  O  God  !  fill  papa  with  a  desire 
to  make  peace  for  the  happiness  of  France  and  of  us 
all !  "  One  evening  when  Napoleon  was  in  his  son's 
room,  he  heard  the  little  Prince  stammering  out  this 
prayer,  and  he  began  to  smile.  Alas !  when  the 
Emperor  tenderly  gazed  on  the  boy  sleeping  in  his 
cradle,  why  did  he  not  think  of  all  the  mothers  whom 
his  headstrong  ambition  was  to  deprive  of  their  sons  ? 
How  could  fatherly  love,  that  deep  and  gentle  feeling, 
be  reconciled  with  such  disdain  of  human  lives  sac- 
rificed for  a  doubtful  glory  and  for  such  short-lived 
plans  ? 


VIII. 

THE   CONCORDAT   OF   FONTAINEBLEAU. 

AT  the  beginning  of  1813  Napoleon  might  still 
have  saved  his  Empire  and  himself;  he  had 
not  broken  with  his  father-in-law,  or  with  the  Princes 
of  the  Confederation  of  the  Rhine,  or  even  with  the 
King  of  Prussia,  and  he  had  command  of  immense 
resources  in  men  and  money.  His  great  mistake  lay 
in  supposing  that  an  unprecedented  disaster,  like 
that  of  the  Russian  campaign,  was  an  unimportant 
episode.  He  ought  to  have  consented  with  a  good 
grace  to  throw  something  overboard,  in  order  that 
all  should  not  be  lost.  Instead  of  that,  the  Emperor, 
staking  his  whole  fortune  on  a  single  card,  took  for 
his  motto :  All  or  nothing.  Resolved  to  accept  no 
diminution  of  territory  or  influence,  he  thought  that 
at  his  New  Year's  reception  of  the  great  bodies  of 
the  State  and  of  the  High  Officials,  he  could  be, 
January  1,  1813,  what  he  had  been  January  1,  1812. 
He  hardened  himself  the  more  because  his  enemies 
wished  to  humble  him ;  and  he  had  been  so  long 
accustomed  to  the  favors  of  Fortune  that  he  imagined 
that  she  had  been  guilty  of  only  a  temporary  infidelity. 

109 


110  MARIE   LOUISE. 


Nevertheless,  Paris  was  despondent.  The  year 
1813  began  on  a  Friday:  this  number  13  and  the 
Friday  impressed  the  superstitious.  People  said 
that  since  Josephine  was  no  longer  with  Napoleon 
to  give  him  good  luck,  fate  had  condemned  him  to 
misfortune.  A  number  of  officers  and  soldiers 
returned,  some  having  lost  an  arm  or  a  leg,  others 
with  hands  or  feet  frozen.  They  described  the  ter- 
rible disasters  they  had  witnessed,  and  their  stories 
dismayed  their  hearers.  The  French,  who  were 
recently  so  warlike,  had  became  most  peaceable. 
As  for  the  Emperor,  he  tried  by  every  means  in  his 
power  to  react  against  this  general  depression.  He 
had  this  paragraph  inserted  in  the  Moniteur :  "  Paris, 
January  10.  His  Majesty  the  Emperor  was  yester- 
day at  the  The'&tre  Francois,  where  the  tragedy  of 
Hector  was  given.  This  modern  piece  is  an  especial 
favorite  of  His  Majesty.  This  morning,  Sunday,  after 
mass,  there  was  a  parade,  and  His  Majesty  spent 
three  hours  on  foot,  in  spite  of  the  mud  and  the  bad 
weather,  in  inspecting,  organizing,  and  reviewing  his 
troops.  He  saw  a  great  number  of  newly  arrived 
conscripts.  The  men  are  excellent,  full  of  enthu- 
siasm, and  very  eager." 

Napoleon  commanded  the  High  Officials  and  Queen 
Hortense  to  give  the  usual  festivities.  "  Every  one 
was  compelled,"  says  Chateaubriand,  "to  go  to  the 
balls  with  death  in  his  heart,  silently  weeping  for  rel- 
atives and  friends.  ...  In  the  drawing-rooms  was 
seen  what  is  met  in  the  streets :  namely,  unhappy 


THE   CONCORDAT   OF  FONTAINEBLEAU.      Ill 

creatures  seeking  distraction  by  singing  their  un- 
happiness  to  divert  passers-by."  The  Emperor  would 
have  liked  cheerfulness  even  in  the  retreat  from 
Russia.  He  had  said  in  his  29th  bulletin,  "  Those 
whom  nature  had  made  of  sterner  stuff  preserved 
their  gaiety  and  usual  manners."  Among  the  ex- 
ceptional men  whom  nothing  could  daunt,  the 
General  de  Narbonne  was  mentioned  with  great 
admiration ;  for  every  morning,  in  his  bivouac,  he 
used  to  have  his  hair  done  and  powdered  in  the 
midst  of  the  snow,  while  he  chatted  freely  with  the 
officers  of  his  staff.  When  he  had  returned  to  Paris, 
his  friends  congratulated  him,  and  applied  to  him  the 
famous  passage  in  the  29th  bulletin ;  but  he  exclaimed 
sadly,  "  Ah  !  the  Emperor  may  say  what  he  pleases  ; 
but '  gaiety '  is  a  rather  strong  word !  "  And  he  turned 
aside  to  hide  the  tears  which  sprang  to  his  eyes. 

Napoleon  knew  no  such'  attacks  of  melancholy. 
Never  had  he  displayed  more  eagerness  or  greater 
confidence  in  his  good  luck.  He  was  never  tired  of 
saying  that  his  next  campaign  would  open  with  twice 
as  large  forces  as  had  fought  in  the  previous  campaign. 
While  waiting  for  the  hour  of  battle,  he  devoted 
himself  most  warmly  to  the  pleasures  of  the  chase, 
that  mimic  war.  "  At  the  end  of  1812,  and  the 
beginning  of  1813,"  says  his  valet  de  chambre  Con- 
stant, "  I  noticed  that  the  Emperor  had  never  hunted 
so  frequently.  One  day,  when  Marshal  Duroc  was  in 
his  room,  and  he  was  putting  on  his  green  coat  with 
gold  facings,  I  heard  the  Emperor  say,  4I  must  be 


112  MARIE    LOUISE. 


active,  that  the  newspapers  may  speak  of  it ;  for  the 
English  papers  are  saying  every  day  that  I  am  ill, 
cannot  move,  am  good  for  nothing.  Have  patience ; 
I  shall  soon  show  them  that  I  am  well  in  body  and 
mind.' " 

January  19,  1813,  a  hunt  had  been  commanded 
near  Melun,  at  Grosbois,  the  estate  of  Berthier, 
Prince  of  Neufchatel,  who  was  that  day  to  entertain 
the  Emperor  and  Empress.  After  a  breakfast  at  the 
castle  of  Grosbois,  the  hunt  was  about  to  begin 
when,  to  every  one's  surprise,  Napoleon  had  a  post- 
chaise  brought,  and  after  entering  it,  he  drove,  not 
to  Paris,  but  to  Fontainebleau.  Constant  says  that 
the  Empress  and  the  ladies  in  her  suite  had  actually 
nothing  with  them  but  their  hunting-dresses,  and 
that  the  Emperor  was  much  amused  at  their  suffer- 
ings when  they  found  themselves  on  the  way  to 
Fontainebleau  without  proper  dresses. 

The  palace  towards  which  Napoleon  thus  suddenly 
started  had  contained,  since  June  19,  1812,  an  illus- 
trious and  venerable  guest.  This  guest,  or,  more 
exactly,  this  prisoner,  was  the  Pope  Pius  VII.,  the 
most  famous  of  the  victims  of  the  Imperial  policy. 
The  Emperor,  fearing  that  the  English  might  make 
a  descent  on  Savona,  where  the  Holy  Father  was  first 
confined,  had  ordered  him  to  be  carried  to  Fontaine- 
bleau ;  but  remembering  how  the  Vicar  of  Christ  had 
been  greeted  at  Grenoble,  Avignon,  and  Nice,  on  his 
way  to  Savona,  he  had  given  orders  that  this  time 
the  journey  should  be  made  secretly.  Pius  VII.  was 


THE   CONCORDAT   OF  FONTAINEBLEAU.      113 

obliged  to  take  off  his  white  slippers  to  have  them 
stained  with  ink  and  the  embroidered  cross  removed. 
The  string  was  cut  which  held  the  gold  cross  that 
the  Popes  always  wear  around  their  necks ;  he  had 
to  put  on  a  simple  priest's  hat,  and  thus  disguised,  to 
leave  Savona  secretly  the  night  of  June  9 ;  not  until 
a  week  later  did  the  inhabitants  know  that  he  had 
left.  He  was  very  ill  at  the  time,  and  on  his  painful 
journey  was  several  times  at  the  point  of  death. 

Still  he  uttered  no  complaint,  and  after  passing 
through  Chambe'ry  and  Lyons  by  night,  without  any 
one's  suspecting  his  presence,  he  reached  the  gate  of 
the  Palace  of  Fontainebleau  about  noonday,  June  19, 
1812.  The  porter,  who  had  received  no  instructions, 
refused  him  admission;  but  taking  pity  upon  him, 
found  him  temporary  lodging  in  a  little  house  near 
the  palace.  That  evening  the  Duke  of  Cadore 
arrived,  and  gave  orders  that  rooms  should  be  at 
once  made  ready  for  the  Pope.  These  rooms,  which 
looked  out  on  the  Courtyard  of  the  Fountain,  were 
the  same  that  he  had  occupied  in  1804,  at  the  time 
of  the  coronation.  A  detachment  of  foot-grenadiers 
and  of  the  chasseurs  of  the  Imperial  Guard  were  in 
attendance  upon  him ;  and,  as  if  to  disguise  what  was 
really  his  captivity,  the  officer  who  was  charged  with 
guarding  him  was  dressed  as  a  chamberlain.  The 
presence  of  this  austere  and  venerable  man  in  this 
gilded  prison  was  a  touching  spectacle.  When,  sad 
and  solitary,  he  passed  through  the  brilliant  gallery 
of  the  Festivities  and  those  of  the  Bourbons,  his  air 


114  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


of  an  anchorite  made  an  imposing  contrast  with  the 
pagan  memories  of  which  this  spot  was  full.  As  he 
gazed  at  the  mythological  frescos  of  Primaticcio,  the 
Vicar  of  Christ  thought  of  the  emptiness  of  all 
human  glory  and  splendor,  and  he  said  to  himself 
that  palaces  pass  away,  but  the  cross  remains.  He 
cast  a  glance  of  utter  indifference  upon  the.  useless 
luxury  with  which  they  pretended  to  surround  him. 
The  carriages  and  horses  offered  to  him  might  have 
come  from  the  Imperial  stables ;  he  was  firmly 
decided  never  to  use  them.  He  refused  to  officiate 
publicly  in  the  chapel  of  the  palace.  He  asked  for 
and  secured  the  transformation  into  an  oratory  of 
the  drawing-room  nearest  his  bedroom,  and  it  was 
there  that  he  said  mass  every  morning.  He  never 
consented  to  leave  his  rooms  on  any  pretext,  not 
even  to  take  the  air  in  his  garden.  His  sole  prome- 
nade was  to  walk  a  few  steps  in  the  gallery.  The 
inhabitants  of  Fontainebleau  never  set  eyes  on  him. 
He  lived  like  a  monk,  devoting  his  days  to  fasting 
and  prayer,  patching  his  worn-out  clothes.  The 
palace  of  Henri  II.  and  Diane  de  Poitiers,  of  Henri 
IV.  and  Gabrielle  d'Estre'es,  had  become  a  monastery. 
For  seven  months  to  a  day  Pius  VII.  had  led  the 
life  of  an  anchorite  at  Fontainebleau,  when,  January 
19,  1813,  at  nightfall,  just  after  his  frugal  meal, 
while  he  was  talking  with  the  cardinals  and  bishops 
who  lived  with  him,  he  saw  Napoleon  suddenly  enter 
in  hunting-dress !  His  surprise  and  emotion  were 
great  at  seeing  face  to  face  the  conqueror  whose 


THE   CONCORDAT   OF  FONTAINEBLEAU.      115 

image,  even  when  at  a  distance,  was  ever  present  in 
his  thoughts. 

The  emotion  of  Pius  VII.  was  all  the  greater, 
because  the  Emperor,  to  whom  two  years  before  he 
had  written  many  letters  with  his  own  hand,  had 
refused  to  answer  him,  and  had  treated  him  in  the 
severest,  most  insulting  manner,  even  going  so  far  as 
to  send  him  a  message  through  the  Prefect  of  Savona, 
that  he  would  have  to  resign  his  position  as  Sovereign 
Pontiff  for  incapacity.  And  now,  as  if  nothing  had 
happened ;  as  if  they  were  still  in  the  happy  days  of 
1804;  as  if  the  Palace  of  Fontainebleau  was  not  a 
prison,  Napoleon,  with  a  happy  face,  a  kind  expres- 
sion, a  smile  on  his  lips,  ran  up  to  the  holy  old  man, 
took  him  in  his  arms,  and  overwhelmed  him  with 
signs  of  friendship. 

How  much  had  happened  since  the  Pope  and  the 
Emperor  had  parted  nearly  nine  years  before  !  Pius 
VII.  no  longer  found  with  Napoleon  the  amiable 
Josephine,  to  whom  he  had  been  so  kind,  so  fatherly ; 
whose  marriage  he  had  legitimized  before  the  Church, 
and  whose  divorce  he  had  not,  at  any  price,  consented 
to  pronounce.  Where  was  the  time  when  the  new 
Charlemagne  had  inspired  the  successor  of  Saint 
Peter  with  such  great  hopes  ?  How  often  in  his  cap- 
tivity the  Pope,  recovered  from  his  illusions,  thought 
of  Notre  Dame  of  Paris,  and  of  the  brilliant  ceremony 
of  December  2,  1804!  How  often,  too,  Napoleon, 
Catholic  by  his  Italian  origin,  must  have  felt  a  secret 
remorse  when  he  thought,  of  the  Sovereign  Pontiff 


116  MARIE    LOUISE. 


who  had  come  to  crown  him  !  He  still  exercised 
over  his  victim  a  sort  of  fascination,  an  irresistible 
charm ;  so  the  old  man  became  embarrassed  and 
troubled  at  the  thought  of  being  alone  with  this  ter- 
rible charmer.  He  feared  to  be  drawn  into  conces- 
sions which  he  should  later  repent,  and  which  would 
wring  his  conscience. 

For  his  part,  the  Emperor  was  determined  to 
employ  all  the  means  of  action,  intimidation,  and 
seduction  of  which  he  possessed  the  secret.  The 
conference  was  put  off  till  the  next  day,  January  20. 
It  took  place  between  Napoleon  and  Pius  VII., 
who  shut  themselves  up  alone,  and  lasted  not  less 
than  five  days.  "It  is  evident,"  said  the  Abb£  de 
Pradt,  "that  the  Emperor  wished  to  put  an  end  to 
the  business  by  a  sudden  and  unexpected  step,  and 
that  he  trusted  to  the  effect  that  his  presence,  a  direct 
discussion,  and  his  personal  skill,  would  produce  on 
the  Pope.  He  was  then  at  the  height  of  his  fame, 
and  no  one  had  any  suspicion  of  the  Island  of  Elba, 
still  less  of  Saint  Helena."  Napoleon  finally  subju- 
gated his  antagonist  and  brought  him  to  the  point  he 
wanted.  The  Concordat  of  Fontainebleau  contained 
eleven  articles,  and  might  be  regarded  as  an  implicit 
renunciation  by  the  papacy  of  the  temporal  power  of 
the  Popes.  The  first  article  stated  that  His  Holiness 
would  fulfil  the  duties  of  the  pontificate  in  France, 
and  in  the  kingdom  of  Italy,  in  the  same  way  and 
with  the  same  forms  as  his  predecessors.  Residence 
in  Paris  was  not  imposed  upon  the  Holy  Father,  but 


THE   CON  COED  AT  OF  FONTAINEBLEAU.      117 

he  was  obliged  to  reside  in  the  States,  whether  French 
or  Italian,  of  Napoleon.  Avignon  is  said  to  have  been 
the  city  which  Pius  VII.  preferred,  but  it  is  not  men- 
tioned in  the  new  Concordat.  Article  II.  stipulated 
that  the  ambassadors,  ministers,  chargSs  d'affaires  of 
the  powers  to  the  Holy  Father,  and  the  ambassadors, 
ministers,  and  chargSs  d'affaires  whom  the  Pope  might 
send  to  foreign  powers,  should  enjoy  all  the  immuni- 
ties and  privileges  of  the  members  of  the  Diplomatic 
Body.  By  Article  I.  the  Emperor  promised  to  pardon 
the  cardinals,  bishops,  priests,  and  laymen  who  had 
fallen  into  disgrace  on  account  of  recent  events. 
Article  II.  ran  thus :  "  The  Holy  Father  adheres  to 
the  above  arrangements  in  consideration  of  the  pres- 
ent state  of  the  Church,  and  in  the  confidence  inspired 
by  His  Majesty  that  he  will  accord  his  valuable  pro- 
tection to  the  numerous  needs  of  religion  in  the  times 
in  which  we  are  living." 

Napoleon  no  longer  insisted  that  the  black  cardi- 
nals—  those  who  had  refused  to  be  present  at  his 
marriage  with  Marie  Louise  and  had  been  deprived 
by  him  of  the  cardinal's  robes  —  should  be  blamed, 
and  he  did  not  compel  the  Pope  to  banish  forever 
from  his  presence  Cardinals  di  Pietro  and  Pacca. 
Napoleon  also  made  various  concessions  in  regard  to 
the  nomination  of  bishops.  In  the  evening  of  Jan- 
uary 25,  1813,  when  all  was  finished  and  there  was 
nothing  to  do  but  to  sign  the  Concordat,  Pius  VII. 
endured  a  moment  of  indescribable  anguish.  The 
cardinals  who  were  living  with  him  at  Fontainebleau 


118  MARIE   LOUISE. 


were  present  at  this  last  conference.  He  looked  at 
them  earnestly,  betraying  his  mental  anguish  and  his 
stings  of  conscience ;  his  look  seemed  to  say :  Am  I 
right  or  wrong  ?  What  ought  I  to  do  ?  A  word,  a 
sign,  from  the  four  cardinals,  and  ail  would  perhaps 
have  had  to  be  done  over  again.  Not  one  stirred. 
Respecting  the  venerable  Pontiff's  painful  perplexity, 
and  unwilling  to  influence  him  in  any  way,  they  kept 
a  profound  silence,  lowering  their  heads.  Then  the 
Pope  took  the  pen  in  his  trembling  hand  and  signed. 

When  the  Emperor  thus  overcame  the  resistance 
of  the  Vicar  of  Christ,  did  he  suspect  that  he  too,  in 
this  same  Palace  of  Fontainebleau,  would  soon  endure 
distress,  anguish,  doubts,  and  scruples  no  less  terrible 
than  those  of  the  Holy  Father  It  was  at  Fontaine- 
bleau that  he  compelled  the  Pope  to  abdicate  his 
temporal  power,  and  it  was  at  Fontainebleau  that, 
one  year  later,  he  was  to  abdicate  the  Empire.  Pos- 
sibly he  then,  when  he  had  to  trace  the  letters  of  the 
fatal  word,  recalled  what  the  Pope  had  suffered  at  his 
hands.  Deeds  of  violence  almost  always,  even  here 
below,  bring  their  punishment,  and  Providence  ap- 
pears as  the  great  distributor  of  justice  to  peoples  and 
rulers. 

As  soon  as  the  Concordat  had  been  signed,  Marie 
Louise  went,  at  her  own  suggestion,  to  congratulate 
the  Pope.  It  was  especially  in  view  of  Austria  and 
of  Southern  Germany,  essentially  Catholic  countries, 
with  which  alliance  was  necessary,  that  Napoleon  had 
set  so  much  store  on  some  arrangement  with  the 


THE   CONCORDAT  OF  FONTAINEBLEAU.     119 

Pope.  It  is  sometimes  when  the  papacy  appears  fee- 
blest that  it  is  really  strongest.  The  captivity  of 
Pius  VII.  had  been  worse  for  the  jailer  than  for  the 
prisoner.  One  was  to  die  at  Saint  Helena ;  the  other 
was  to  return  in  triumph  to  Rome.  Napoleon  had  a 
vague  instinct  of  the  great  importance  of  the  religious 
question,  and  when  he  imagined  that  he  had  settled 
it  by  the  Concordat  of  Fontainebleau,  he  felt  a  joy 
which  was  to  be  shared  by  his  wife  and  father-in-law. 
Marie  Louise,  who  remembered  that  the  black  cardi- 
nals had  refused  to  be  present  at  her  wedding,  and 
knew  that  Pius  VII.  had  opposed  the  divorce,  was 
both  flattered  and  touched  by  the  warmth  of  the 
Holy  Father's  greeting.  As  soon  as  the  Concordat 
was  signed,  she  wrote  to  the  Emperor  Francis :  "  We 
have  been  at  Fontainebleau  for  six  days.  The  Em- 
peror and  the  Pope  have  settled  the  affairs  of  Chris- 
tianity in  the  best  way.  The  Pope  seems  very 
happy.  Since  yesterday  morning  he  has  been  most 
easy  and  gracious ;  he  signed  the  treaty  in  less  than 
a  quarter  of  an  hour.  I  have  just  seen  him  ;  I  found 
him  very  well.  He  has  a  very  handsome  and  inter- 
esting face.  This  reconciliation  will,  I  am  sure, 
please  you  as  much  as  it  does  me." 

Napoleon,  too,  hastened  to  send  in  confidence  to  his 
father-in-law  the  text  of  the  new  Concordat,  with  a 
letter  to  which  the  Emperor  Francis  replied  February 
17,  1813,  as  follows  :  - 

"Mr  BROTHER  AND  VERY  DEAR  SON-IN-LAW:  It  is 
with  great  pleasure  that  I  have  received  Your  Impe- 


120  MARIE    LOUISE, 

rial  Majesty's  last  letter.  You  know  how  much 
interest  I  take  in  the  real  welfare  of  your  government. 
The  condition  of  the  Church  has  a  great  interest  for 
France,  and  a  definite  arrangement  of  its  affairs  has 
no  less  for  my  Empire.  I  am  very  anxious  that  Your 
Imperial  Majesty  should  be  equally  successful  in  set- 
tling with  the  Holy  Father  the  temporal  question 
with  which  is  closely  connected  that  of  the  perfect 
independence  of  the  head  of  the  universal  Church. 
It  is  this  independence  which  especially  interests  the 
Catholic  powers;  it  is  not  without  points  of  great 
utility  to  Your  Majesty  himself.  I  shall  keep  the 
secret  you  desire  concerning  the  text  of  the  transac- 
tion which  you  have  been  kind  enough  to  communi- 
cate to  me." 

February  18,  1813,  Count  Otto,  French  Ambas- 
sador at  Vienna,  had  already  written  this  despatch 
on  the  same  subject:  "Yesterday  morning  I  was 
admitted  to  a  private  audience,  in  which  I  handed  His 
Majesty's  letter  to  the  Emperor.  He  did  not  open  it 
in  my  presence,  but  I  hastened  to  tell  him  that  it 
contained  a  copy  of  the  Concordat  concluded  by  the 
Emperor  with  the  Pope.  The  Emperor  expressed 
the  liveliest  satisfaction.  He  told  me  he  had  always 
desired  this  arrangement  as  one  of  the  essential  bases 
of  public  peace  in  France  and  in  the  rest  of  Europe. 
'  I  often  spoke  on  this  subject,'  he  said,  i  to  your 
master  during  his  stay  at  Dresden.  The  influence 
of  religious  opinions  is  far  too  powerful  not  to  become 
with  you,  as  elsewhere,  one  of  the  leading  principles 


THE   CONCORDAT   OF  FONTAINEBLEAU.     121 

of  internal  policy.     I  draw  from  it  the  happiest  augu- 
ries for  a  general  peace.'  " 

In  appearance  everything  was  settled ;  in  fact, 
nothing  was.  The  Concordat  did  not  contain  a 
formal  renunciation,  on  the  part  of  the  Holy  Father, 
of  the  possession  of  the  Roman  States ;  it  spoke  only 
of  the  Pope's  promise  to  exercise  his  pontificate  in 
the  Emperor's  states,  and  Pius  VII.  made  only  an 
implicit  abdication.  More  than  this,  the  very  evening 
of  the  signature  Napoleon  had  dictated  to  the  Bishop 
of  Nantes  so  strange  a  letter  that,  according  to  the 
Count  d'Haussonville,  it  is  hard  to  make  out  whether 
it  was  inspired  by  amiability  or  whether  it  contained 
bitter  sarcasm.  This  is  the  letter :  "  Your  Holiness 
having  appeared  to  fear  at  the  moment  of  signing  the 
articles  of  the  Concordat  which  put  an  end  to  the 
divisions  that  afflict  the  Church,  that  this  implied  a 
renunciation  of  the  sovereignty  of  Rome,  I  take  pleas- 
ure in  assuring  you  by  this  letter,  that  never  having 
felt  justified  in  demanding  it,  I  cannot  conceive  that 
there  has  been  any  renunciation,  direct  or  indirect, 
of  the  sovereignty  of  the  Roman  States,  and  I  have 
intended  to  treat  with  you  only  in  your  capacity  as 
Head  of  the  Church  in  spiritual  matters."  Had 
Napoleon  forgotten,  when  he  wrote  this  letter,  that 
he  had  styled  his  son  the  King  of  Rome,  and  that  the 
Eternal  City  was  the  capital  of  a  French  department, 
the  Department  of  the  Tiber  ?  No ;  doubtless  he  had 
not  forgotten  it.  He  knew  well  that  in  the  eyes  of 
Pius  VII.  the  true  King  of  Rome  was  not  the  little 


122  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


Prince  Imperial,  but  himself,  the  Pope.  The  restora- 
tion to  favor  of  the  black  cardinals  cost  the  Emperor 
a  bitter  pang.  He  especially  feared  Cardinal  Pacca. 
"  He  is  my  enemy,"  he  often  said.  He  signed  with 
reluctance  the  decree  setting  free  the  prelate  and  the 
Cardinal  di  Pietro.  He  felt  sure  that  these  two 
cardinals  would  fill  with  scruples  and  anxiety  the 
troubled  conscience  of  Pius  VII.  "  When  the  Cardi- 
nal di  Pietro  arrives,"  he  said  to  the  Pope,  half  ironi- 
cally, "  you  will  confess  to  him." 

Napoleon  and  Marie  Louise,  before  leaving  Fon- 
tainebleau,  January  27,  1813,  took  affectionate  leave 
of  the  Holy  Father.  But  no  sooner  had  the  Pope 
seen  the  mighty  conqueror  depart  than  he  fell  into 
deep  dejection  and  bitterly  repented  the  concessions 
he  had  made.  His  timidity  plunged  him  into  deep 
anguish ;  he  fancied  himself  false  to  his  duties  and  to 
the  cause  of  Heaven.  When  he  looked  at  the  pine- 
trees  which  Louis  XVI.  had  planted  opposite  the 
gloomy  rooms  where  Monescalchi  was  assassinated, 
he  suffered  moral  tortures  like  those  that  had  wrung 
the  heart  of  the  martyred  king  when  the  Pope  had 
written  to  him,  "  If  you  were  disposed  to  renounce 
even  the  rights  inherent  in  the  royal  prerogative,  you 
have  no  right  to  alienate  or  to  abandon  what  is  due 
to  God  and  to  the  Church,  whose  eldest  son  you 
are." 

When  Cardinal  Pacca  presented  himself  at  Fon- 
tainebleau,  he  found,  he  said,  "  His  Holiness  in  a 
pitiable  and  alarming  state.  When  he  spoke  of  what 


THE   CONCORDAT   OF  FONTAINEBLEAU.      123 

had  happened  he  was  overwhelmed  with  the  deepest 
remorse.  This  distracting  thought  robbed  him  of 
sleep  and  let  him  eat  only  enough  to  avoid  starva- 
tion." In  his  despair  the  unhappy  man  exclaimed, 
"  All  this  will  make  me  die  mad,  like  Clement  XIV." 
The  only  alleviation  to  his  grief  was  the  thought 
that  he  had  yielded  only  to  force ;  yet  he  bitterly 
reproached  himself  for  not  preferring  martyrdom  to 
concessions  which  he  regarded  as  dishonorable  and 
criminal.  From  that  moment,  but  one  idea  possessed 
him,  —  to  recant,  whatever  might  be  the  consequences 
of  such  temerity.  May  24,  1813,  he  gave  to  the  offi- 
cers in  charge  of  his  person  a  letter,  in  which  he 
declared  to  Napoleon  that  he  regarded  the  Concordat 
of  January  25  as  null  and  void ;  then  he  read  to  the 
cardinals  who  were  with  him  an  allocution  in  which 
he  said  to  them  in  a  transport  of  mystic  joy,  "  Blessed 
be  the  Lord,  who  has  not  removed  his  mercy  from 
us.  He  wished  to  humiliate  us  by  a  salutary  confu- 
sion. May  this  humiliation  be  for  the  good  of  our 
soul !  To  him  for  all  time  be  praise,  and  honor,  and 
glory !  "  From  that  day,  calm  took  possession  of  the 
successor  of  Saint  Peter,  and,  freed  from  remorse,  he 
recovered  his  health  and  moral  peace  ;  his  sleep  and 
a  heart  at  peace. 


IX. 

THE  COUNT  OF  SAINT  MARSAN. 

IT  is  curious  to  notice  how  formidable  Napoleon 
continued  to  be,  even  after  the  retreat  from  Rus- 
sia, and  how  much  he  was  dreaded.  The  blood-stained 
snows  had  wrought  no  injury  to  the  pedestal  on  which 
stood  that  colossal  figure.  Even  Germany,  though 
cowed  and  impatient,  did  not  dare  to  express  her 
hatred  openly.  It  was  in  secret  councils  and  mys- 
terious meetings  that  the  general  insurrection  was 
prepared.  Judging  from  the  diplomatic  conditions, 
Napoleon  seemed  to  enjoy  the  same  power.  His 
representatives  at  Berlin  and  at  Vienna,  the  Count 
of  Saint  Marsan  and  Count  Otto,  were  treated  with 
the  utmost  respect.  Austria  and  Prussia  appeared, 
officially  at  least,  desirous  of  maintaining  and  even  of 
strengthening  the  French  alliance.  The  two  ambas- 
sadors received  the  most  cordial  assurances  and  the 
most  lavish  promises.  We  have  inspected  the  corre- 
spondence of  these  two  diplomatists  and  that  of  Gen- 
eral the  Count  of  Narbonne,  who,  in  1813,  succeeded 
Count  Otto  as  French  Ambassador  at  Vienna.  The 
greater  number  of  the  despatches  we  quote  have 

124 


THE    COUNT    OF    SAINT   MARSAN.  125 

never  been  printed.  They  set  before  us,  one  might 
almost  say  from  day  to  day,  the  growth  of  the  evil 
by  which  two  countries  that,  during  the  war  of  1812, 
had  been  the  vassals  rather  than  the  allies  of  France, 
passed  from  obedience  to  discussion,  from  discussion 
to  disagreement,  and  ended  with  declaring  war  on 
their  ally.  These  despatches  are  mainly  interesting 
to  diplomatists ;  but  others,  we  hope,  will  find  them 
not  unworthy  of  attention. 

The  situation  of  the  Prussian  court  was  especially 
difficult  at  the  end  of  1812.  Napoleon  had  done  too 
much  or  too  little  for  it.  From  the  moment  he  had 
forborne  to  destroy  it,  he  should  have  treated  it  more 
kindly.  By  imposing  French  garrisons  upon  it,  and 
weighing  it  down  with  burdens  of  every  sort,  he  had 
produced  a  feeling  of  exasperation  which  for  many 
years  was  latent  and  was  sooner  or  later  to  break 
forth.  A  country  like  that  of  Frederick  the  Great, 
accustomed  to  glory,  could  not  resign  itself  to  such  a 
humiliated  condition. 

King  Frederick  William,  guarded  by  the  French 
troops  who  occupied  Berlin  and  the  fortified  towns, 
bore  more  likeness  to  a  hostage  than  to  an  independ- 
ent sovereign.  The  misery  of  his  ruined  and  humili- 
ated people  had  grown  till  it  filled  castles  as  well  as 
hovels ;  no  one's  fortune  had  been  spared ;  private 
sufferings  rivalled  those  of  the  state.  Napoleon  took 
account  of  all  this,  and  his  position  with  relation  to 
Prussia  was  as  false  as  Prussia's  position  with  relation 
to  him.  On  one  hand,  he  owed  the  Prussian  govern- 


126  MARIE    LOUISE. 


ment  money  for  food  and  supplies,  and  on  the  other 
he  had  every  reason  to  believe  that  the  money  he 
should  pay  this  government  would  be  spent  against 
France.  The  Count  of  Saint  Marsan,  the  Emperor's 
Minister  at  Berlin,  was  highly  thought  of  then ;  but 
circumstances  are  stronger  than  men,  and  in  spite  of 
all  his  zeal,  intelligence,  and  loyalty,  this  skilful  and 
honest  diplomatist  was  unable  to  stem  the  torrent. 

Still,  at  the  end  of  1812,  Prussia  was  still  trem- 
bling before  Napoleon,  and  the  King  had  not  shown 
by  a  word,  a  gesture,  or  a  movement  of  his  face,  the 
slightest  indication  of  resistance.  Perhaps  even  at 
this  moment  he  was  sincere  in  his  desire  of  maintain- 
ing an  alliance  against  which  the  national  feeling 
protested,  but  which  was  to  be  broken  by  the  govern- 
ment only  after  long  hesitations  and  a  real  terror. 

On  passing  through  Dresden  on  his  way  from 
Russia,  the  Emperor,  December  14,  1812,  had  writ- 
ten to  Frederick  William,  the  King  of  Prussia,  that 
it  was  very  important  that  the  Prussian  contingent 
should  alone  constitute  an  army  corps,  and  should  be 
raised  to  thirty  thousand  men.  "In  asking  Your 
Majesty  to  augment  his  troops,"  it  was  said  in  Napo- 
leon's letter,  "I  show  how  much  confidence  I  have 
in  the  system  you  have  adopted."  The  letter  ended 
with  congratulations  on  the  courage  and  discipline 
displayed  by  the  Prussian  troops  during  the  campaign. 
It  was  handed  to  the  King  at  Berlin  by  the  Count 
of  Saint  Marsan,  who  addressed  the  following  report 
to  the  Emperor,  December  17,  1812:  "The  King 


THE    COUNT    OF    SAINT    MAESAN.  127 

received  me  with  his  usual  kindness.  I  handed  him 
Your  Majesty's  letter.  I  had  a  long  audience,  and  I 
have  the  satisfaction  of  announcing  to  Your  Majesty 
that  I  found  the  King  in  the  most  compliant  mood, 
without  a  cloud  on  the  loyalty  and  frankness  of  his 
character.  The  King  added  that  he  did  not  fear  fac- 
tious spirits,  that  I  ought  to  have  seen  that  he  had 
taken  some  measures,  and  that  orders  had  been  given 
to  keep  a  rigid  oversight  and  to  punish  everything 
of  the  sort  that  showed  itself,  no  matter  how  trivial, 
even  if  a  mere  jest.  In  general,  Sire,  I  was  able  to 
see  that  the  King  was  gratified  by  two  things :  one 
by  the  satisfaction  Your  Majesty  expressed  with  the 
conduct  of  his  troops,  and  the  other,  the  mark  of  con- 
fidence and  consideration  you  gave  in  asking  him  to 
unite  his  contingent  in  a  single  army  corps  consisting 
of  his  troops  alone,  thus  treating  him  like  Austria." 

The  Count  of  Saint  Marsan  did  not  conceal  from 
the  Emperor  the  extreme  agitation  which  was  begin- 
ing  to  show  itself  in  Prussia,  and  in  this  report  he 
said :  "  I  ought  not  to  keep  it  'from  Your  Majesty, 
the  foes  of  this  system  of  union  with  France  are 
working  most  eagerly  to  excite  every  one.  The  King, 
who  is  of  frank,  loyal,  and  scrupulously  upright  char- 
acter, is  not,  I  think,  open  to  the  attacks  of  those 
who  would  like  to  lead  him  into  another  system, 
especially  since  he  is  endowed  with  a  certain  firmness 
which  some  may  call  obstinacy,  that  is  no  less  useful 
at  this  moment.  The  Baron  von  Hardenberg,  who 
is  of  an  upright  and  loyal  character,  and  who  is 


128  MARIE    LOUISE. 


especially  anxious  not  to  pass  for  a  frivolous  politi- 
cian, is  too  clear-sighted  not  to  see  that  if  Prussia 
changes  her  system  she  would  begin  by  being  over- 
whelmed by  France,  and  that  if  she  escaped  ruin,  she 
would  become  the  prey  of  Russia.  On  the  other 
hand,  this  Minister  thinks  that  at  the  moment  when 
Your  Majesty  shall  be  able  to  give  a  firm  and  solid 
peace  to  Europe,  Prussia,  having  faithfully  followed 
your  system,  will  seem,  too,  destined  to  form  a  con- 
stant ally  of  France  and  her  northern  frontier,  and 
that  Your  Majesty  will  assign  to  this  country,  not  the 
military  place  which  it  has  occupied  and  which  was 
exaggerated,  but  the  rank  that  it  held  in  the  politi- 
cal system  for  the  equilibrium  of  Europe.  I  know 
that  he  goes  so  far  as  to  think  that  if  Poland  is  not 
so  strongly  constituted  as  to  assure  its  existence,  it 
might  occur  to  Your  Majesty  not  to  unite  Poland 
with  Prussia,  but  to  make  the  King  of  Prussia  the 
King  of  Poland,  in  order  to  strengthen  the  frontier, 
by  combining  the  interior  lines  and  countries.  .  .  . 
The  greater  part  of  the  nation  have  always  regarded 
the  system  of  union  with  France  as  the  safeguard 
of  Prussia,  but  at  this  moment  they  are  disturbed 
by  all  the  intrigues  of  the  opposite  party,  which  is 
smaller  but  more  active ;  and  the  sufferings,  which  are 
really  excessive,  and  the  burdens  that  weigh  upon 
proprietors,  do  not  act  in  our  favor." 

The  first  news  of  the  French  disasters  were  not 
believed  in  Prussia,  where  it  could  not  be  imagined 
that  the  unrivalled  army  which  had  been  seen  in  its 


TEE    COUNT    OF    SAINT   MARS  AN.  129 

splendor  a  few  months  before  was  nothing  but  a 
phantom.  But  the  arrival  of  the  wounded  made  the 
truth  known,  and  from  that  time  thoughts  of  revenge 
fired  every  Prussian  heart.  Nevertheless,  M.  de  Saint 
Marsan  had  no  suspicions  of  Frederick  William's 
feelings  about  Napoleon,  and  he  wrote  to  the  Em- 
peror at  the  end  of  December :  "  All  sorts  of  talk 
are  still  prevailing  at  Berlin.  Part  of  it  is  due  to  the 
French  wounded  who  are  passing  through.  Mal- 
contents are  agitating,  but  it  amounts  to  nothing 
more  serious  than  drawing-room  talk,  especially  on 
the  part  of  a  few  women.  The  King  and  the  Minis- 
try are  faithfully  following  a  line  of  conduct  such  as 
I  am  able  to  approve.  The  King  thinks  that  Your 
Majesty  intends  to  devote  the  great  resources  of  your 
genius  and  the  strength  of  your  Empire  to  collect  an 
army  still  more  formidable  than  the  first ;  that  then 
you  will  negotiate  a  peace,  even  a  general  peace.  .  .  . 
When  the  King  heard  that  the  Duke  of  Bassano 
meant  to  pass  through  Berlin,  he  expressed  to  me  his 
satisfaction.  He  gave  orders  to  have  a  house  pre- 
pared for  him,  and  when  he  was  told  that  I  meant  to 
have  him  stay  with  me,  sent  me  word  that  he  hoped 
that  the  Duke  would  at  least  make  use  of  his  horses 
and  carriages;  that  besides  his  desire  to  testify  his 
esteem  and  regard  for  the  Duke  of  Bassano,  it  was 
well  that  the  public  should  know  what  he  felt  for 
Your  Majesty's  Minister." 

There  was  a  strange  contrast  between  the  language 
of   the   Prussian  court,  which  was  always  gracious, 


130  MARIE    LOUISE. 


courteous,  and  respectful  towards  Napoleon,  and  the 
deep-seated  anger  which  the  countiy  no  longer  sought 
to  conceal ;  but  M.  de  Saint  Marsan  no  less  persisted 
in  building  great  hopes  upon  the  King  and  his 
Ministry.  December  22,  1812,  he  wrote  a  despatch 
to  the  Duke  of  Bassano  :  "  Clamor  and  malice  are 
under  full  headway.  The  Chancellor  continually 
urges  the  police  to  keep  close  watch.  It  has  been 
suggested  to  him  to  issue  a  special  order  on  the  sub- 
ject :  he  thinks  this  useless,  and  possibly  dangerous 
at  this  moment.  I  agree  with  him.  We  have  agreed 
that  every  overt  act  or  attempt  shall  be  severely 
punished,  and  that  the  greatest  publicity  should  be 
given  to  the  measures  adopted  by  the  government 
for  the  promotion  of  the  common  cause,  which  will 
be  of  the  happiest  effect,  and  produce  an  excellent 
impression  upon  the  nation.  .  .  .  With  respect  to 
its  main  policy,  without  regard  to  special  circum- 
stances, I  believe  that  if  Prussia  is  sure  of  the  con- 
fidence of  France,  she  will  always  prefer  the  French 
alliance  to  any  other." 

The  illusions  of  the  French  diplomatist  were 
doomed  to  have  a  terrible  awakening.  December 
30,  1812,  a  thunderbolt  fell.  On  that  day,  General 
York,  who  commanded  the  twenty  thousand  Prus- 
sians of  the  rear  guard,  and  almost  the  whole  of 
General  Macdonald's  army  corps,  concluded,  at 
Tauroggen,  a  capitulation  by  which  he  and  his 
troops  entered  into  the  Russian  army  corps  that 
was  pursuing  him.  The  Prussian  soldiers  shouted 


THE    COUNT    OF    SAINT   MAE 8 AN.  131 

with  joy  when  they  heard  the  order  of  the  day  that 
announced  this  defection,  which  was  the  first  out- 
break of  the  feelings  that  were  to  manifest  them- 
selves in  the  whole  nation.  At  the  same  time, 
General  York  wrote  to  his  King :  "  If  I  have  made  a 
mistake,  I  am  willing  to  be  shot,  and  will  meet  my 
fate  with  calmness  and  serenity,  being  conscious 
that  I  have  always  remained  a  faithful  subject  and  a 
good  Prussian.  The  time  has  come  for  Your  Majesty 
to  escape  from  the  disastrous  demands  of  an  ally 
whose  views  concerning  Prussia,  if  fortune  had  re- 
mained faithful  to  him,  are  still  wrapt  in  impenetrable 
obscurity.  These  are  the  considerations  that  have 
decided  him.  Heaven  grant  that  they  may  further 
the  well-being  of  my  country !  " 

For  his  part,  General  Macdonald  wrote,  January 
1,  1813,  to  Major-General  Berthier :  "  General  York 
has  fully  justified  my  estimate  of  him :  I  had  clearly 
seen  that  he  was  our  deadliest  foe,  but  I  should  never 
have  deemed  him  capable  of  such  black  treachery. 
I  have  always  had  the  greatest  consideration  for  his 
troops,  and  thoroughly  confided  in  their  honor." 

King  Frederick  William  had  no  part  in  .General 
York's  defection.  As  soon  as  he  heard  of  it,  he 
summoned  the  Count  of  Saint  Marsan,  and  earnestly 
disavowed  the  general's  conduct.  The  French  Min- 
ister was  convinced  by  the  King's  loyal  utterances, 
and  told  him  that  he  would  disbelieve  the  whole 
world  before  he  would  doubt  the  King.  January  5, 
1813,  he  wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano  :  "  Last  even- 


132  MARIE    LOUISE. 


ing,  at  eleven  o'clock,  the  King  sent  to  me  the  Baron 
von  Hardenberg  to  announce  his  decision.  His 
Majesty  was  amazed  and  indignant  at  General  York's 
defection.  His  first  words  were, '  It's  enough  to  give 
one  an  attack  of  apoplexy.'  What  is  to  be  done? 
The  King  has  decided  that  His  Majesty  the  King  of 
Naples  shall  be  asked  to  announce,  in  an  order  of 
the  day  of  the  French  army,  the  King's  disavowal 
and  indignation;  that  if  General  York  cannot  be 
arrested,  he  shall  be  judged  in  default ;  that  Prince 
von  Hatzfeld  shall  go  at  once  to  Paris  to  convey 
to  His  Majesty  the  Emperor  the  expression  of  the 
King's  feelings,  and  to  manifest  the  same  feelings 
to  all  Europe,  by  means  of  this  exceptional  mission." 
The  Count  of  Saint  Marsan  wrote  again  to  the  Duke 
of  Bassano,  January  7 :  "It  is  impossible,  my  lord, 
to  exhibit  more  loyalty  and  exactitude  in  discharging 
one's  obligations,  than  is  shown  here."  And  Count; 
von  Goltz,  Prussian  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  sent 
to  all  the  King's  legations  a  circular  letter,  in  which 
he  said :  "  The  King  has  done  and  will  do  all  that 
lies  in  his  power  to  prove  that  he  remains  faithful  to 
his  system  and  to  his  promises.  (January  9,  1813.)" 
In  reality,  Frederick  William  had  not  yet  made  up 
his  mind ;  he  was  hesitating.  Never,  perhaps,  was  a 
sovereign  in  a  more  perplexing  position.  Whichever 
way  he  looked  he  saw  nothing  but  trouble,  uncer- 
tainty, and  misery.  He  asked  himself  what  he  ought 
to  do,  arid  his  conscience  gave  only  a  confused  and 
undecided  reply.  Being  forced  either  to  break  his 


THE    COUNT    OF   SAINT   MARSAN.  133 

word  to  France,  which  was  able  to  crush  him,  or  else 
to  fight  for  her  against  friends  who  represented  them- 
selves as  liberators,  this  naturally  loyal  ruler  strug- 
gled with  doubts  and  hesitations  which  were  really 
torturing.  Is  it  credible  ?  Even  after  General  York's 
defection,  even  after  the  extraordinary  hatred  of 
everything  French  that  broke  out  in  the  whole 
Prussian  kingdom,  Frederick  William  was  far  from 
decided  to  break  loose  from  Napoleon. 

It  is  a  very  significant  detail  that  at  this  very 
moment,  early  in  1813,  the  Prussian  court  seriously 
contemplated  a  matrimonial  alliance  between  the 
Crown  Prince  and  a  Princess  of  the  Emperor's  fam- 
ily. The  despatch  of  the  Count  of  Saint  Marsan 
referring  to  this  proposed  marriage  is  dated  Jan- 
uary 12,  1813,  and  it  is  very  curious.  It  has  never 
been  published,  and  shows  better  than  anything  the 
ascendancy  which  Napoleon  still  exercised.  In  this 
despatch  the  Count  began  by  reporting  the  remarks 
the  King  had  made  to  Prince  Hatzfeld,  who  was 
about  to  leave  for  Paris  to  visit  the  Emperor. 

"  The  King,"  said  the  Minister  of  France,  "  has  in 
the  first  place  overwhelmed  Prince  von  Hatzfeld  with 
attentions.  He  has  shown  him  how  highly  he  appre- 
ciates his  services,  the  purity  of  his  feelings,  the 
justice  of  his  opinions.  .  .  .  He  then  said  to  him, 
4  Assure  the  Emperor  that  nothing  can  move  me  from 
my  plan  of  alliance  with  him.  Take  every  means  of 
ridding  him  of  every  trace  of  suspicion  or  mistrust 
which  he  may  feel  toward  Prussia.  It  is  true  that 


134  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


most  of  my  friends  are  ill-disposed  towards  the 
French,  and  very  naturally ;  but  unless  they  are 
forced  by  the  necessity  of  unendurable  sacrifices, 
they  will  take  no  active  steps ;  it  thus  is  no  occasion 
for  surprise  at  what  happens  in  places  whither  the 
enemy  penetrates ;  but  in  those  very  places  the  inhab- 
itants have  greeted  the  French  army  in  the  warmest 
way,  when  it  was  exhausted  by  all  it  had  endured ; 
and  this  proves  the  purity  of  our  intentions  and  their 
obedience  to  my  orders.  I  think  that  I  have  seen 
proof  that  Austria  will  remain  firm  in  its  alliance 
with  France.  If  that  were  otherwise,  my  position  is 
very  different  from  that  of  that  power;  I  am  the 
natural  ally  of  France.  If  I  were  to  change  my  sys- 
tem, I  should  always  be  sacrificed  by  the  Russians, 
and  then  again  by  the  French,  who  would  treat  me 
as  an  enemy,  and  with  justice.  I  know  there  are 
madmen  who  look  upon  France  as  exhausted,  but 
you  will  soon  see  it  presenting  an  army  of  three  hun- 
dred thousand  men,  as  fine  as  the  first  one.  I  sup- 
pose that  I  shall  have  dark  moments  and  sacrifices 
to  endure ;  I  shall  endure  what  I  must  to  assure  the 
peace  and  future  prosperity  of  my  family.  Tell  the 
Emperor  I  can  make  no  more  pecuniary  sacrifices ; 
but  if  he  will  give  me  the  money,  I  can  still  raise 
fifty  or  sixty  thousand  men  for  his  service.  More- 
over, in  the  present  circumstances  it  is  fortunate  that 
Prussia  is  tranquil ;  for  if  there  were  to  be  an  insur- 
rection in  this  country,  it  would  be  the  spark  that 
would  set  Germany  ablaze." 


THE    COUNT    OF   SAINT   MARSAN.  135 

In  this  despatch  the  Count  of  Saint  Marsan  spoke 
thus  of  the  matrimonial  project :  "  The  idea  has  been 
started  here  that  it  might  be  possible  to  conclude  a 
family  alliance  between  France  and  Prussia  by  the 
marriage  of  a  Princess  of  the  Imperial  family  of 
France  with  the  Crown  Prince  of  Prussia.  This 
idea,  which  suggests  the  union  of  all  their  interests 
between  the  two  powers,  —  a  union  already  natural 
in  view  of  the  political  condition,  —  has  necessarily 
made  an  impression  on  the  mind  of  so  enlightened 
a  minister  as  the  Baron  von  Hardenberg,  and  has 
inspired  him  with  the  hope  of  seeing  his  work  thus 
consolidated ;  and  after  having  assured  the  existence 
of  Prussia,  by  a  political  alliance  with  France,  of 
obtaining  its  restoration  by  a  family  alliance,  which 
would  remove  all  suspicion  and  mistrust,  and  engage 
France  to  restore  Prussia  to  its  place  and  make  it  her 
northern  frontier." 

M.  de  Saint  Marsan,  further  on  in  the  despatch, 
thus  reported  Frederick  William's  conversation  with 
Prince  Hatzfeld  concerning  the  proposed  marriage : 
"Coming  thus  to  the  plan  of  the  marriage,  this  is 
what  the  King  said  to  Prince  Hatzfeld :  '  If  you  have 
an  opportunity,  listen  to  what  is  said ;  express  your 
own  opinions,  but  make  no  promises  unless  you  have 
received  orders.'  Then  the  Prince  asked  if  he  could 
know  what  he  really  thought  of  it,  and  if  in  any  case 
he  would  follow  this  plan.  'I  cannot  conceal  from 
you,'  said  the  King,  'that  as  father  of  a  family,  I  am 
averse  to  contracting  an  alliance  from  merely  politi- 


136  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


cal  motives.  Nevertheless,  if  I  see  that  there  will 
result  considerable  advantages  that  will  place  my 
kingdom  in  a  higher  position  than  it  now  holds,  I 
shall  not  hesitate.' ' 

The  French  Minister  thus  closed  his  despatch: 
"  Your  Excellency  may  assure  the  Emperor  that  this 
report  of  the  King's  conversation  with  Prince  Hatz- 
feld  is  absolutely  accurate.  Besides,  it  is  in  harmony 
with  the  King's  upright  and  loyal  character,  and  with 
the  feelings  he  has  always  had  for  France,  even  when 
he  was  led  into  the  war  of  1806,  to  which  it  is  noto- 
rious that  he  was  opposed.  Hence  if  Your  Excel- 
lency gives  Prince  Hatzfeld  any  encouragement,  you 
will  find  him  eager  to  discuss  the  matter,  although 
unofficially.  As  for  me,  I  have  spoken  about  this 
affair  freely,  because  it  is  well  known  that  I  received 
personal  confidences,  and  consequently  I  have  been 
free  to  utter  my  own  personal  opinions.  I  have 
endeavored  to  convey  the  impression  that  I  regard 
an  event  of  this  sort  as  certain  to  assure  not  merely 
the  prosperity  of  Prussia,  but  also  the  peace  of 
Europe,  since  it  would  dig  the  ground  from  beneath 
the  feet  of  those  evil  citizens  of  Germany  who  are 
always  hoping  to  lead  their  sovereigns  into  some 
course  of  action  that  would  bring  about  general  dis- 
order." 

January  15,  the  Count  of  Saint  Marsan  was  still 
convinced  that  the  Franco-Prussian  alliance  could  be 
maintained.  "If  His  Majesty  the  Emperor,"  he 
wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano,  "judges  it  well  to 


THE    COUNT    OF   SAINT   MAES  AN.  137 

show  confidence  in  this  government,  I  am  convinced 
that  this  alone  would  suffice  to  defeat  the  proposi- 
tions which  might  be  made  by  England  and  Russia. 
Also  that  some  consideration  in  the  sacrifices  to  be 
demanded,  a  little  money  for  securing  stores,  and  the 
maintenance  of  discipline  among  the  soldiers,  would 
prevent  any  explosion  on  the  part  of  the  inhabi- 
tants." 

While  the  French  diplomatist  was  in  full  enjoy- 
ment of  this  optimism,  Baron  von  Stein  and  General 
York  were  convoking  the  provincial  states  at  Konigs- 
berg,  and  securing  a  decree  to  arm  the  entire  popula- 
tion and  to  employ  every  resource  against  France. 
As  for  the  King,  he  had  not  yet  decided  to  speak  out 
against  Napoleon ;  but  he  wished  already  to  hold  an 
intermediate  position,  to  obtain  the  neutrality  of  Sile- 
sia, and  by  a  general  peace  to  secure  the  complete 
freedom  of  Prussia.  Nearly  thirty  thousand  French 
still  occupied  its  capital,  and,  moreover,  the  Russians 
were  approaching.  He  then  made  up  his  mind  to 
take  refuge  at  Breslau,  whither  he  betook  himself 
with  the  Ministers  of  France  and  Austria,  and  to 
await  events.  His  Ministers  continued  to  give  the 
Emperor's  representative  the  most  friendly  assur- 
ances. The  Count  of  Saint  Marsan  wrote  to  the 
Duke  of  Bassano :  — 

"Breslau,  February  15,  1813.  Baron  von  Harden- 
berg  has  sworn  to  me  twenty  times  to-day  that  the 
system  has  not  changed:  that  there  have  been  no 
overtures,  direct  or  indirect,  with  regard  to  approach- 


138  -MAEIE   LOUISE. 


ing  Russia.  He  lias  told  me  that  he  awaits  with  the 
greatest  uneasiness  and  impatience  an  answer  from 
Paris,  because  if,  in  view  of  the  circumstances,  His 
Majesty  the  Emperor  approves  the  steps  made  towards 
establishing  the  neutrality  of  Silesia,  and  will  himself 
give  some  aid  to  Prussia,  the  system  will  be  more 
firmly  consolidated  than  ever,  and  nothing  but  de- 
spair can  throw  Prussia  into  the  arms  of  Russia. 
He  has  repeated  to  me  how  much  the  King's  conduct 
since  the  retreat  of  the  Grand  Army  proved  his 
loyalty ;  that  if  he  had  lacked  this  and  had  wished 
to  change  his  system,  he  would  not  have  waited  for 
this  moment,  but  would  have  availed  himself  of 
his  earlier  opportunities ;  and  that,  moreover,  they 
are  not  so  foolish  as  to  forget  that  nothing  is  easier 
than  for  France  to  make  Prussia  repent  a  breach 
of  faith.  ...  A  little  repression  is  being  put  on  the 
utterances  of  the  young  men.  A  severe  reprimand 
has  been  given  to  a  professor  accused  of  exciting  his 
pupils,  indicating  that  the  next  enemy  they  would 
have  to  fight  would  be  the  French.  The  police  have 
received  instructions  on  this  subject,  and  they  needed 
them,  for  they  are  very  incompetent." 

The  Count  of  Saint  Marsan,  when  he  followed  the 
King  to  Breslau,  had  left  at  Berlin  the  First  Secre- 
tary of  Legation,  M.  Edouard  Lefebvre,  who  wrote 
to  the  Duke  of  Bassano,  February  17,  1813 :  "  The 
greater  the  discrepancy  between  events  and  what 
appears  to  be  promised  by  the  King's  loyalty  and  the 
Minister's  good  disposition,  the  readier  we  must  be  to 


THE    COUNT    OF    SAINT   MARSAN.  139 

believe  that  matters  are  unsettled  at  Breslau,  and 
that  possibly  no  definite  decision  has  been  made. 
The  King's  timorous  and  hesitating  character  would 
justify  this  opinion.  ...  I  sent  to  Your  Excellency, 
by  yesterday's  courier,  the  Gazette  containing  an 
edict  which  declares  that  all  young  men  more  than 
twenty-four  years  old  may  enlist,  if  they  choose,  and 
that  the  King  and  the  country  will  be  grateful  for 
this  proof  of  devotion.  The  upshot  is  that  enlistment 
is  compulsory  from  seventeen  up  to  twenty-four,  and 
voluntary  from  twenty-four  up  to  an  undetermined 
age." 

Only  one  thing  could  have  prevented  the  explosion  ; 
that  was  the  success  of  Prince  Hatzfeld's  mission  in 
Paris  ;  but  this  fell  to  the  ground.  The  Prince  was 
unable  to  obtain  from  the  Emperor  either  reimburse- 
ment for  the  supplies  furnished  or  the  evacuation  of 
the  strongholds.  These  two  refusals  discouraged  the 
last  French  inclinations  of  the  King,  and  drove  him 
still  more  towards  Napoleon's  enemies. 

Meanwhile  Frederick  William  still  continued  im- 
penetrable, and  gave  the  Count  no  chance  to  suspect 
his  speedy  decision ;  and  the  Minister  thus  wrote  in  a 
despatch  dated  Breslau,  February  21,  1813 :  "  There 
has  been  no  change  in  the  way  I  am  treated.  The  King 
sees  no  one  here,  as  at  Berlin,  except  at  his  dinner, 
from  which  the  Diplomatic  Body  is  excluded ;  but  he 
goes  into  private  company,  even  when  he  has  to  pay. 
I  met  him  the  other  evening  at  a  ball  of  this  kind 
where  I  knew  that  he  was  going ;  he  came  up  to  me 


140  MARIE    LOUISE. 


at  once  ;  talked  with  me  a  long  time ;  asked  me  often 
what  news  I  had  from  the  Emperor,  talking  at  great 
length  about  his  indefatigable  activity,  and  the  im- 
mense advantages  his  strength  gave  him ;  he  said 
nothing  about  the  condition  of  the  country ;  besides, 
the  place  was  too  public.  The  Crown  Prince  and  the 
other  young  Princes  who  were  with  the  King  also 
sought  me  out  for  particular  attentions ;  and  all  this 
caused  great  surprise  in  the  assembled  company." 

February  27,  the  Count  of  Saint  Marsan  gave  up 
every  illusion.  In  a  despatch  dated  that  day  he 
wrote :  "  There  is  no  longer,  in  my  opinion,  any 
doubt  that  Prussia  is  about  to  abandon  the  alliance 
with  France.  Baron  von  Hardenberg  said  to  me: 
'  If  Prussia  should  ever  change  its  system,  it  could 
not  be  denied  that  it  had  been  forced  so  to  do  by  the 
harshness  with  which  it  has  been  treated,  and  by  its 
receiving  no  answer  on  so  important  a  subject  as 
that  of  its  advances  at  a  time  when,  left  to  itself,  it 
would  be  desired  that  it  should  neither  make  use  of 
its  own  means,  nor  seek  to  lessen  its  misfortunes.' 
He  assured  me,  moreover,  that  the  condition  of  neu- 
trality was  always  in  such  a  state  that  it  could  be 
revoked  on  forty-eight  hours'  notice ;  but  he  did  not 
conceal  from  me  the  fact  that  Russia  is  making  all 
sorts  of  advances  to  Prussia." 

The  next  day,  February  28,  1813,  the  courts  of 
Saint  Petersburg  and  Berlin  concluded  at  Kalisz  a 
treaty  of  alliance  which  was  at  first  kept  secret. 
Russia  engaged  to  provide  one  hundred  and  fifty 


THE    COUNT    OF    SAINT   MAES  AN.  141 

thousand  men  for  the  war  against  France  ;  and  Prus- 
sia, eighty  thousand  men.  The  two  powers  agreed 
to  use  all  their  efforts  to  secure  the  adhesion  of 
Austria.  The  Emperor  Alexander  promised  not  to 
lay  down  his  arms  until  Prussia  should  be  restored 
to  the  condition  she  was  in  before  1806. 

The  existence  of  this  treaty  was  kept  hidden  from  the 
Count  of  Saint  Marsan,  and  he  was  treated  as  cour- 
teously as  ever.  He  wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano :  — 

"  Breslau,  March  1, 1813.  Although  the  agreement 
with  Russia,  and  the  perfect  harmony  existing  be- 
tween the  two  courts  is  as  evident  as  was  the  alliance 
with  France  scarcely  a  month  ago,  there  has  been  no 
change  in  the  formality  and  respect  with  which  I  am 
treated,  not  only  by  the  court,  but  also  by  the  public 
and  the  leading  members  of  society.  As  to  business, 
nothing  is  ever  said  about  it ;  and  I,  for  my  part, 
remain  entirely  passive ;  I  should  only  compromise 
myself,  and  consequently  the  dignity  of  His  Majesty 
the  Emperor,  if,  after  all  I  have  said,  I  should  demand 
new  explanations."  M.  de  Saint  Marsan  already 
guessed  the  secret  which  was  kept  from  him.  He 
had  written  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano,  March  2 :  "  I 
have  said  that  Prussia  could  not  long  play  a  doubtful 
part.  I  have  just  heard  some  news  which  leads  me 
to  think  that  it  has  decided,  and  that  the  threats  and 
promises  of  the  Russians  have  produced  their  effect. 
I  understand  that  General  Bliicher  has  been  set  free." 
And  yet  the  French  diplomatist  still  thought  that 
the  Prussian  alliance  might  be  saved.  In  the  same 


142  MARIE    LOUISE. 


despatch  he  said :  "  If  His  Majesty  the  Emperor 
does  not  judge  it  well  to  do  anything  for  Prussia,  it 
will  declare  against  us,  and  will  be  forced  to  do  this 
willy  nilly.  If  anything  is  done  for  it,  I  am  far  from 
despairing  of  its  retention  in  the  system.  Inasmuch 
as  I  am  entirely  without  orders  and  instructions,  and 
have  no  knowledge  of  what  are  the  intentions  of  His 
Majesty  the  Emperor,  and  am,  in  consequence,  unable 
to  utter  one  word  in  the  way  of  promises  and  positive 
encouragement,  I  confine  myself  to  general  discussion, 
to  axioms  and  hypotheses,  which  I  turn  over  and  over 
in  every  way.  .  .  .  Prince  Hatzfeld  has  sent  a  report 
dated  February  14,  in  which  he  indicates  a  hope  of 
obtaining  something.  The  original  was  immediately 
read  to  me  in  confidence.  In  our  last  interview 
Baron  von  Hardenberg  said  to  me  :  4 1  cannot  under- 
stand why  His  Majesty  the  Emperor  does  not  con- 
sent to  do  anything  for  the  King,  and  to  give  some 
sort  of  a  positive  promise ;  he  would  never  have  a 
more  faithful  ally  than  he.  He  has  proved  this  by 
the  enormous  sacrifices  he  has  already  made ;  but  no 
one  seems  to  take  any  account  of  these.'  " 

We  are  inclined  to  think  that  Napoleon  could  not 
have  easily  conciliated  the  Prussian  nation,  although 
he  might  have  kept  the  government  in  his  system  of 
alliance  if  he  had  made  it  in  time  the  indispensable 
concessions.  King  Frederick  William  and  Baron 
von  Hardenberg  were  distinctly  frightened  by  the 
demagogic  tendencies  which  manifested  themselves. 
Towards  the  end  of  1812  they  were,  we  think,  still 


THE    COUNT    OF    SAINT   MARS  AN.  143 

well  disposed ;  and  if  the  Emperor  had  restored  its 
strongholds  to  Prussia ;  if  he  had  paid  for  the  supplies 
it  had  furnished ;  if  he  had  conceded  some  territory, 
it  is  our  impression  that  the  Cabinet  of  Berlin  would 
have  declared  itself  satisfied,  and  would  have  done 
its  best  to  stem  the  torrent  which  threatened  to 
carry  away  everything.  Possibly  it  would  not  have 
succeeded,  but  it  would  at  least  have  tried.  If 
the  nation  in  its  enthusiasm  especially  yearned  for 
revenge,  what  the  calmer  and  more  cautious  govern- 
ment preferred  was  peace ;  but  an  honorable  peace, 
that  should  assign  to  Prussia  an  important  position  in 
Europe,  instead  of  the  enfeebled  condition  in  which 
it  was  left. 

The  die  was  cast;  Napoleon,  who,  with  wisdom, 
might  have  found  a  way  to  disarm  the  hatred  of  the 
Prussian  people,  was  confronted  by  a  bitter,  implaca- 
ble adversary.  The  passions  which  republican  France 
unchained  against  Europe  were  turned  against  impe- 
rial France.  Sovereigns,  ministers,  generals,  were 
about  to  become  demagogues,  to  borrow  the  French 
phraseology  of  1792,  to  promise  constitutions  as  a 
means  of  arousing  the  different  peoples  against  the 
ruler  of  the  continent.  Secret  societies  uttered  cries 
of  vengeance.  Religion  and  science  fostered  the  war- 
like spirit.  Church  pulpits  and  teachers'  chairs 
were  turned  into  public  tribunes.  The  Prussian  peo- 
ple seized  their  arms  and  rose  like  one  man ;  women, 
rich  and  poor,  sent  to  the  Treasury  all  their  gold  and 
silver  and  jewels,  even  their  wedding-rings.  These 


144  MARIE    LOUISE. 


offerings  were  received  with  a  gratitude  that  only  added 
to  the  patriotic  enthusiasm ;  in  exchange  there  were 
given  objects  in  iron,  of  the  same  form,  bearing  this 
inscription  :  "  I  have  given  my  gold  for  iron.  1813." 
The  revolutionary  weapons,  which  Napoleon  had 
refused  to  employ  against  the  King,  were  about  to  be 
used  against  him ;  and  to  oppose  them  he  had  only 
the  regular  resources  of  monarchies  by  divine  right. 

March  15,  1813,  the  Emperor  Alexander  had 
entered  Breslau.  King  Frederick  William  had  gone 
to  meet  him,  and  the  two  sovereigns  on  horseback 
had  been  greeted  by  the  applause  of  the  troops. 
Two  days  later,  March  17,  M.  de  Saint  Marsan 
received  official  notice  of  the  treaty  concluded,  Feb- 
ruary 28,  between  the  two  monarchs.  "  Your  Excel- 
lency," he  wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano,  "  will  have 
concluded  from  the  reports  which  I  have  had  the 
honor  of  sending  to  you  that  the  alliance  between 
Prussia  and  Russia  is  definitely  settled;  that  the 
King  and  the  government  are  carried  away,  one  may 
say,  by  the  German  revolutionary  party,  and  that  all 
possible  means  will  be  tried,  and  all  the  most  turbu- 
lent individuals  employed  to  arouse  the  whole  Ger- 
man nation."  The  Count  lingered  a  few  days  at 
Breslau,  and  did  not  receive  his  passports  till  March 
27.  In  a  despatch  dated  that  day  he  wrote:  "I 
have  had  to  exercise  much  patience  and  self-control 
to  stay  here  as  a  spectator  of  all  that  has  taken  place ; 
nevertheless,  I  must  say  that  both  the  government 
and  private  citizens  have  treated  me  most  consider- 


THE    COUNT    OF    SAINT   MAESAN.  145 

ately.  I  venture  to  flatter  myself  that  I  have  com- 
plied with  His  Majesty's  wishes,  and  have  closely  fol- 
lowed the  line  of  duty  by  leaving  Breslau,  without 
orders  from  His  Majesty  the  Emperor,  only  when  the 
government  demanded  it."  War  was  declared  be- 
tween France  and  Prussia. 


X. 

COUNT   OTTO. 

IN  1812  the  French  Ambassador  at  Vienna  was  a 
diplomatist  of  great  merit,  Count  Otto,  who  had 
for  many  years  represented  the  Emperor  Napoleon  at 
the  court  of  the  Emperor  Francis,  and  had  been  one 
of  the  principal  negotiators  of  the  marriage  of  the 
Empress  Marie  Louise.  By  his  tact,  his  experience, 
and  his  conciliating  character,  he  had  won  general 
sympathy  at  the  Austrian  court,  where  he  was  what 
in  diplomatic  language  is  called  a  persona  grata., 
His  despatches  do  him  great  honor.  He  knew  how 
to  tell  the  truth  to  Napoleon  in  the  most  respectful 
forms,  and  it  was  certainly  not  his  fault  if  his  sover- 
eign indulged  in  illusions,  which  were  destined  to  be 
fatal,  on  the  character  and  extent  of  the  Austrian 
alliance. 

The  main  cause  of  Napoleon's  errors  was  that 
politically  he  set  too  much  importance  on  his  mar- 
riage with  an  archduchess.  He  should  have  known 
that  before  becoming  the  father-in-law  of  the  Emperor 
of  the  French,  the  father  of  Marie  Louise  was  the 
Emperor  of  Austria,  and  that  if,  after  his  defeat  at 
146 


COUNT    OTTO.  147 


Austerlitz  and  Wagram  he  had  to  choose  between 
his  paternal  affection  and  his  interests  as  a  ruler,  his 
choice  was  not  doubtful.  From  the  moment  when 
Russia,  Prussia,  and  England  promised  him  to  restore 
Illyria,  the  Tyrol,  and  the  Lombardo- Venetian  King- 
dom, while  France  could  only  promise  Illyria,  —  and 
even  that  was  doubtful, — family  considerations  could 
have  but  little  weight.  Still,  even  after  the  Russian 
war,  Napoleon  might  have  made  use  of  Austria.  She 
would  have  been  of  great  service  in  helping  him  to 
make  an  honorable  peace  with  all  the  powers ;  but  to 
secure  this  peace  he  would  have  had  to  make  consid- 
erable concessions,  and  that  is  what  Napoleon  did 
not  wish  to  do.  This  is  at  least  what  we  conclude 
from  Count  Otto's  correspondence,  many  of  whose 
despatches,  almost  all  unpublished,  we  are  about  to 
quote. 

October  31,  1812,  the  Ambassador  informed  the 
Duke  of  Bassano,  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  of  the 
excitement  which  was  beginning  to  pervade  Austria. 

"  I  was  told  this  morning,"  he  wrote,  "  that  the 
Archduke  John  had  said  at  dinner  at  Duke  Albert's, 
that  at  last  the  time  had  come  for  sharpening  their 
daggers  and  falling  on  the  French.  It  was  added 
that  I  had  sent  a  note  to  complain  of  this  violent 
utterance.  This  specimen  will  give  you,  my  Lord, 
an  idea  of  the  lies  in  circulation  here,  which,  it  is 
hoped,  will  disturb  the  good  understanding  between 
the  two  governments.  Often  these  lies  are  accom- 
panied by  so  many  plausible  details  that  it  is  hard  for 


148  MARIE    LOUISE. 


me  to  defend  myself.  Some  agitator,  who  saw  me  a 
few  days  ago  leaving  the  Palace,  had  the  insolence  to 
spread  abroad  the  rumor  that  I  had  been  to  Laxen- 
burg  to  inform  the  Emperor  of  the  sad  condition  of 
our  army  and  to  ask  for  a  re-enforcement  of  fifty 
thousand  men." 

November  10,  1812,  Count  Otto  informed  the  Min- 
ister that  Austria  intended  not  to  continue  the  war 
as  a  French  ally,  but  to  endeavor  by  diplomacy  to 
secure  a  general  peace  :  "  In  my  frequent  interviews 
with  Count  Metternich  I  have  been  able  to  see  that 
he  was  inclined  towards  a  plan,  which  he  could  hardly 
hope  would  succeed,  and  which  he  feared  to  commu- 
nicate to  me.  Being  unused  to  this  reserve,  I  tried 
to  find  out  his  secret,  and  it  was  only  after  many 
conversations  that  I  was  able  to  convince  myself  that 
the  Austrian  Cabinet  desired  to  be  charged  by  us  with 
the  honorable  duty  of  carrying  messages  of  peace  not 
merely  to  Russia,  but  even  to  England.  If  I  had  any 
doubts  about  these  intentions,  they  would  have  been 
removed  by  the  interview  that  I  had  yesterday  with 
His  Majesty  the  Emperor  of  Austria,  on  the  occasion 
of  the  Festival  of  the  Order  of  Saint  Stephen.  After 
expressing  to  me  his  hopes  for  the  success  of  Count 
Lauriston's  mission,  he  said  :  4  In  the  winter  you  will 
have  time  to  negotiate ;  all  Europe  craves  peace ;  in 
case  you  cannot  come  to  an  understanding  with  the 
court  of  Saint  Petersburg,  I  will  speak  to  it  in  your 
name,  if  your  master  gives  me  authority,  for  you 
understand,  of  course,  that  I  shall  do  nothing  without 


COUNT    OTTO.  149 


your  consent.  I  think,  moreover,  that  my  interven- 
tion will  not  be  without  result.  But  peace  to  last, 
must  be  general,  and  England  should  share  in  it :  I 
have  no  relations  with  that  power ;  nevertheless,  if 
your  master  desires,  I  will  gladly  take  steps  to  learn 
its  intentions.' " 

In  the  same  despatch  Count  Otto  expressed  the 
wonder  whether  Austria  was  sincere  or  was  playing 
a  double  game.  "  I  confess,"  he  went  on,  "  that  so 
far  nothing  justifies  such  a  supposition.  Austria  has 
an  evident  interest  in  the  humiliation  of  Russia. 
The  Viennese  court  has  rejected  with  scorn  the 
propositions  that  have  been  made  to  it  since  the 
beginning  of  the  war ;  it  has  acted  at  Constantinople 
in  perfect  [conformity  with  our  views ;  it  has  done 
everything  to  prevent  the  ratification  of  the  treaty 
of  Bucharest ;  and  appears  to  have  at  least  delayed 
it.  Its  ruler's  tastes,  its  financial  condition,  make  it 
more  and  more  desirous  of  peace :  it  asks  for  nothing 
better  than  a  chance  to  repair  its  losses  in  the  late 
wars,  and  the  public  itself  is  so  convinced  of  this, 
that,  in  spite  of  the  outcries  of  the  enemies  of  France, 
it  is  mainly  to  the  French  alliance  that  it  should 
ascribe  the  prosperous  state  of  its  new  issue  of  notes, 
—  a  real  barometer  of  public  opinion." 

Nevertheless,  the  Ambassador  noted  the  progress 
which  Napoleon's  enemies  were  making  in  Vienna. 
"  The  Russians,"  he  wrote,  November  25,  "  have  on 
their  side  almost  all  the  aristocracy  of  the  Continent, 
and  the  English  are  the  allies  of  all  the  bankers  and 


150  MARIE    LOUISE. 


merchants  of  every  country.  Hence  there  is  no 
need  of  surprise  at  the  inconceivable  speed  with 
which  false  rumors  spread  through  Europe.  Here 
the  Greek  merchants,  who  control  two-thirds  of  the 
commerce  of  Vienna,  are  entirely  in  the  interest  of 
Kussia.  A  few  days  ago  they  started  the  rumor 
that  Napoleon  had  been  taken  prisoner.  This  absurd 
statement  brought  about  a  fall  on  'Change  of  ten 
per  cent;  so  great  is  the  contradiction  between 
public  confidence  and  the  passions  of  the  moment." 

When  the  disasters  in  Russia  became  fully  known, 
these  passions  spread  alarmingly.  Count  Otto  wrote 
a  letter  to  Napoleon  himself,  December  18,  1812,  in 
which  he  said :  "  Your  Majesty  knows  the  elements 
that  compose  the  Viennese  public  too  well  not  to 
conjecture  the  impressions  caused  by  recent  events. 
The  most  alarming  rumors,  the  most  painful  con- 
jectures and  hopes  have  followed  one  another  rapidly. 
Nothing  was  talked  about  but  the  destruction  of  the 
Grand  Army,  and  the  impossibility  of  beginning 
another  campaign.  The  Emperor  and  his  Ministry, 
who  have  a  better  knowledge  of  the  resources  of 
France,  took  a  fairer  view  of  the  condition  of  things. 
They  are  confident  of  the  success  of  a  second  cam- 
paign ;  but  they  none  the  less  desire  to  be  commis- 
sioned by  Your  Majesty  with  the  honorable  task  of 
trying  to  negotiate  during  the  winter."  In  the  same 
letter  Count  Otto  confessed  with  noble  frankness  the 
dangers  of  the  situation.  "  Such,"  he  added,  "  is  the 
force  of  the  passion  of  the  moment,  and  such  the 


COUNT    OTTO.  151 


blindness  of  the  multitude,  that  they  persist  in  see- 
ing and  dreading  nothing  but  France,  although  she 
alone  is  capable  of  some  day  saving  Austria.  At 
the  present  time,  Sire,  Russia  is  full  of  attentions  to 
Austria ;  all  the  intrigues  of  the  Cabinet  and  of  its 
numerous  agents  have  but  one  aim,  — that  of  bringing 
the  court  of  Vienna  into  a  new  alliance,  which  would 
be  for  her  a  new  source  of  misfortune." 

Ten  days  later,  December  28,  1812,  the  Ambas- 
sador wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano:  "However 
painful  may  be  the  picture  of  what  is  going  on  here, 
it  is  my  duty,  my  Lord,  to  draw  it  for  you  without 
concealment.  It  is  perhaps  without  a  precedent  that 
the  government  of  a  great  power  should  have  formed 
the  idea  of  deserting  an  ally,  after  its  first  reverses, 
to  join  the  flags  of  its  enemy.  Nevertheless,  this  is 
what  the  majority  of  the  influential  men  of  this 
country  have  dared  to  urge  immediately  after  the 
news  of  the  disastrous  retreat  of  our  army.  The 
endeavor  has  been  made  to  circumvent  the  Emperor 
by  all  the  means  which  intrigue  and  corruption 
could  employ  against  his  good  faith.  It  has  been 
represented  to  him  that  since  France  no  longer  had 
an  army,  it  would  be  absurd  to  try  to  continue  the 
war  alone  against  the  Russian  giant ;  that  the  court 
of  Berlin  was  unable  to  continue  its  armaments ;  that 
Bavaria,  the  Duchy  of  Warsaw,  and  Saxony  had 
neither  men  nor  money  left ;  that  the  North  of  Ger- 
many was  ready  to  hoist  the  standard  of  revolt  and 
to  drive  out  the  sovereigns  who  had  been  merely 


152  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


French  prefects  ;  that  consequently  it  was  necessary 
to  recall  the  auxiliary  corps,  to  change  his  policy, 
and  to  profit  by  this  favorable  moment  to  retake  the 
province  he  had  lost ;  that  more  than  sixty  millions 
of  Germans  and  Italians  were  ready  to  declare  for 
Austria,  and  to  make  common  cause  with  her;  that 
France  herself  was  on  the  eve  of  a  great  revolution  ; 
that  the  last  conspiracy  in  Paris  had  had  many  far- 
spreading  roots  in  England,  in  Spain,  and  even  in 
the  Grand  Army,  where  the  Emperor  Napoleon  had 
narrowly  escaped  assassination  by  some  partisans  of 
Malet  and  Lahorie ;  finally,  that  the  time  had  come 
to  deliver  Europe  from  a  yoke  that  had  become 
insupportable,  and  to  restore  to  its  people  their  old 
laws  and  their  independence." 

The  Empress  of  Austria,  the  step-mother  of  Marie 
Louise,  was  desirous  of  playing  the  part  which  the 
beautiful  Queen  Louisa  had  taken  at  Berlin  before 
the  battle  of  Jena.  Count  Otto  knew  very  well  that 
the  wife  of  Emperor  Francis  was  secretly  at  the  head 
of  the  party  which  desired  war  against  Napoleon,  and 
in  this  same  despatch  of  December  28,  1812,  he  said, 
speaking  of  this  Princess's  views:  "Although  the 
Empress  is  not  free  to  make  her  opinion  known,  it 
is  notorious  that  she  favors  exclusively  all  the  ene- 
mies of  the  present  policy,  and  that  she  associates 
only  with  the  boldest  and  most  zealous  coalitionists. 
One  recent  anecdote  may  serve  as  an  example  of  her 
opinions.  Before  the  last  Austrian  war,  the  Arch- 
duke Charles  had  shown  some  opposition  to  a  new 


COUNT    OTTO.  153 


appeal  to  arms ;  she  went  to  him,  fell  at  his  feet,  and 
besought  him  not  to  oppose  a  measure  which  might 
restore  to  the  monarchy  its  former  glory  and  avenge 
all  the  insults  it  had  endured.  It  is  said  that  the 
Archduke  Charles  could  not  resist  her  tears,  and  that 
he  voted,  against  his  judgment,  for  a  war  of  which 
he  foresaw  the  disastrous  issue.  I  have  to-day  been 
informed  that,  like  her  brother  Maximilian,  she  has 
joined  the  Society  of  the  Friends  of  Virtue." 

Count  Metternich,  who  was  accused  of  sympa- 
thizing with  France,  was  violently  attacked  by  all 
the  intimates  of  the  Empress.  The  Emperor's  Am- 
bassador thus  expressed  himself  on  this  subject  in  the 
same  despatch :  "  While  thus  breaking  out  against 
France,  the  faction  has  not  forgotten  to  attack  the 
main  defender  of  the  French  alliance,  Count  Metter- 
nich. Not  a  day  passes  that  they  do  not  invent 
some  new  way  of  discrediting  him,  and  announce 
authoritatively  that  he  is  about  to  be  replaced  by 
M.  von  Stadion.  Count  Metternich  has  so  little 
support  at  court  and  in  society,  that  he  is  obliged 
to  associate  with  his  most  active  enemies,  in  order 
to  persuade  them  to  pardon  him  for  the  decision  he 
has  made.  Nine-tenths  of  the  public  have  been  in 
succession  misled  by  the  false  rumors,  the  lampoons, 
and  even  the  caricatures  which  are  allowed  to  circu- 
late." 

What  was  the  attitude  of  Emperor  Francis  amid 
this  general  excitement  ?  He  acted  with  the  great- 
est prudence,  coming  out  neither  for  nor  against 


154  MARIE    LOUISE. 


Napoleon.  At  heart  he  yearned  for  continued  har- 
mony with  his  son-in-law,  and  in  no  way  desired  a 
restoration  of  the  Bourbons  to  the  throne  of  France. 
The  memory  of  many  centuries  of  rivalry  between 
the  Bourbons  and  the  House  of  Austria  was  always 
fresh.  The  Emperor  Francis,  we  are  convinced, 
sincerely  desired  the  consolidation  of  the  new  French 
dynasty ;  but  this  desire  did  not  go  so  far  as  to  sac- 
rifice to  its  sovereign  the  essential  interests  of  his 
monarchy.  At  any  rate,  at  the  end  of  1812,  he  was 
perhaps,  of  all  the  Austrians,  the  one  least  hostile  to 
Napoleon.  When  at  this  decisive  hour  he  wished 
to  inspire  his  son-in-law  with  ideas  of  moderation 
and  wisdom,  he  was  not  false  to  him:  he  loyally 
sought  the  best  means  of  saving  him. 

Count  Otto  thus  spoke  of  this  monarch  in  his 
despatch  of  December  28,  1812:  "The  'Count  of 
Sickingen  said  to  me,  '  After  the  interests  of  his  own, 
country,  the  Emperor  has  nothing  nearer  his  heart 
than  to  see  the  French  government  and  the  new 
dynasty  establish  itself.  He  fears  that  the  distrac- 
tions and  the  ever-renewing  wars  may  not  leave  the 
Emperor  Napoleon  time  enough  to  finish  his  work. 
He  is  afraid  for  his  daughter  and  for  his  grandson, 
whom  he  loves  much.  His  uneasiness  has  affected 
his  health.  The  intrigues  of  malcontents  torment 
him  without  moving  him.  It  is  desirable  that  the 
Emperor  Napoleon  write  to  him  often,  to  strengthen 
the  confidence  with  which  he  inspired  him  at  Dres- 
den. You  cannot  think  how  great  an  influence  a 


COUNT    OTTO.  155 


letter  from  your  sovereign  has  on  the  Emperor's  state 
of  mind.  Whenever  he  receives  one,  he  talks  about 
it  for  several  days,  weighing  every  word  and  encour- 
aging himself  with  the  hopes  it  contains.'  ...  I 
concluded  by  thoroughly  reassuring  the  Count  of 
Sickingen  on  the  turn  our  affairs  must  take  within 
two  months.  He  left  me  to  go  to  the  Emperor,  with 
whom  he  passes  every  evening  in  absolute  solitude. 
Minister  Metternich  spoke  to  me  to  the  same  effect. 
He  is  anxious  that  the  two  sovereigns  should  have 
very  close  relations,  and  that  they  should  write  to 
each  other  their  impressions  with  perfect  freedom. 
'  Arrange  matters,'  he  said  to  me  yesterday,  '  so  that 
they  shall  speak  to  us  unreservedly,  and  that  we  shall 
know  exactly  what  the  Emperor  Napoleon  means. 
We  think  that  we  can  be  useful  to  him ;  we  who  are 
outside  of  the  vortex  which  surrounds  you,  can  get 
another  view  of  things  from  yours,  and  in  this  case 
we  will  give  you  our  opinions  frankly.'  " 

A  few  days  later,  when  the  defection  of  the  Prus- 
sian contingent  was  known  in  Vienna,  «Count  Metter- 
nich, while  still  protesting  affectionate  sentiments 
towards  France,  noticeably  modified  his  attitude.  He 
began  by  clearing  away  the  vagueness  which  had 
hitherto  shrouded  his  thoughts.  Taking  courage 
from  what  had  happened  in  North  Germany,  he 
announced  certain  ideas  which  seemed  at  the  time 
to  be  only  wishes,  but  were  almost  ready  to  become 
demands.  Count  Otto  perfectly  understood  the  im- 
port of  this  altered  policy.  "  In  uttering  the  word 


156  MARIE    LOUISE. 


peace"  he  wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano,  January  10, 
1813,  "the  Austrian  Cabinet  modifies  its  position, 
and  puts  the  nation  and  the  army  on  its  side.  Hence 
public  opinion  gives  it  a  power  which  it  cannot  expect 
from  either  its  troops  or  its  finances.  But  this  word 
will  not  be  uttered,  until  authority  has  been  received 
from  its  august  ally.  That,  my  Lord,  is  the  point 
of  view  from  which  the  present  condition  of  things 
should  be  regarded.  This  Cabinet  will  have  great 
power  as  an  armed  mediator,  and  very  little  as  an 
ally;  and  when  we  consider  the  internal  passions 
that  agitate  the  monarchy,  we  cannot  withhold  our 
gratitude  from  the  Sovereign  and  his  Prime  Minister 
for  so  firmly  resisting  the  shock  of  recent  events. 
Austria's  feelings  are  unalterable,  in  spite  of  the  solic- 
itations of  every  sort  by  which  she  is  beset.  I  have 
new  proof  of  this  in  the  interview  with  which  the 
Emperor  honored  me  this  morning,  on  the  occasion  of 
the  festival  of  the  Order  of  Leopold.  His  Majesty 
renders  perfect  justice  to  our  ability  to  carry  on  the 
war,  but  asks  what  will  be  the  result  of  it.  He 
thinks  that  France  and  Russia  can  do  each  other  no 
real  harm ;  that  these  two  giants  will  grind  to  pow- 
der whatever  happens  to  be  between  them ;  and  that 
at  the  end  of  the  bloodiest  conflict  the  world  will 
ever  have  seen,  peace  will  be  made  at  last  on  nothing 
but  heaps  of  ashes." 

Anxiety  had  so  wrought  on  the  health  of  the 
Emperor  Francis  that  the  great  reception  announced 
for  New  Year's  Day  had  been  given  up.  Metternich 


COUNT    OTTO.  157 


told  Count  Otto  that  he  had  seen  this  monarch  in 
very  difficult  circumstances,  when  his  own  life  and 
the  preservation  of  the  Empire  were  at  stake ;  but 
that  he  had  never  seen  him  more  troubled  than  he 
was  at  that  moment. 

The  Emperor  Francis  was  still  hesitating;  but 
Metternich  had  drawn  up  a  programme  which  he 
thus  sums  up  in  his  Memoirs : 

"  Napoleon's  failure  against  Russia  has  altered  the 
situation  of  the  Emperor  of  the  French,  as  well  as 
that  of  the  other  powers. 

"  The  result  for  Europe  will  be  peace. 

"  To  bring  about  a  peace  is  the  true  task  of  Austria. 

"  What  course  is  to  be  followed  to  secure  peace ;  a 
real  peace,  not  a  disguised  armistice,  like  all  the 
treaties  concluded  with  the  French  Republic  and 
with  Napoleon  ? 

"  The  only  course  is  to  compel  France  to  withdraw 
into  limits  which  warrant  the  hope  of  a  durable 
peace,  and  of  the  re-establishment  of  a  political  equi- 
librium between  the  powers." 

The  Austrian  statesman  added  to  the  statement  of 
this  programme  :  "  The  attitude  of  Austria  as  an 
armed  mediating  power  is  in  accordance  with  both 
the  geographic  situation  of  the  Empire  and  with  its 
strength,  and  will  permit  the  Emperor  Francis  to 
have  the  last  word  in  war,  as  in  peace.  We  should 
work  unremittingly  to  arm  ourselves  to  make  war. 
The  Emperor's  pact  will  be  made  sure  by  the  time 
which  we  shall  thus  gain." 


158  MARIE    LOUISE. 


Napoleon,  on  the  other  hand,  imagined  that  Aus- 
tria, instead  of  mediating,  would  be  his  ally,  offensive 
and  defensive ;  and  without  asking  anything  for  her- 
self, would  aid  in  preserving  all  the  French  Empire, 
even  Rome,  even  Holland,  even  the  Hanseatic  towns. 
The  lack  of  harmony  was  not  proclaimed,  but  it 
existed  in  a  latent  condition ;  and  early  in  1813  it 
was  easy  to  foresee  that  the  son-in-law  and  the  father- 
in-law  would  soon  quarrel  in  spite  of  the  protestations 
of  friendship  which  they  lavishly  uttered,  and  in 
spite  of  the  announcement  of  an  early  formal  cor- 
onation of  Marie  Louise  and  of  the  King  of  Rome  — 
a  ceremony  which  Napoleon  thought  would  touch 
the  paternal  heart  of  the  Emperor  of  Austria  and 
strengthen  the  bonds  of  alliance. 

Nevertheless  the  French  Ambassador  at  Vienna 
wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano,  January  18,  1813 : 
"  In  the  most  critical  moments  I  have  endeavored, 
my  Lord,  to  betray  no  distrust.  I  think  that  noth- 
ing would  so  injure  our  relations  with  the  Emperor 
of  Austria  as  the  idea  that  he  was  misunderstood  by 
his  august  ally.  Long  study  of  this  monarch's  char- 
acter has  convinced  me  that  with  a  very  just  mind 
he  combines  principles  of  uprightness  and  delicacy,  of 
which  I  have  received  most  touching  proofs.  It  is 
not  he  who  has  been  able  to  conceive  the  idea  of  prof- 
iting by  the  impression  made  in  different  parts  of 
Europe  by  the  disasters  of  the  Grand  Army;  the 
faintest  show  of  such  a  suspicion  would  pain  him 
greatly.  .  ,  ,  The  news  of  the  approaching  corona- 


COUNT    OTTO.  159 


tion  of  Her  Majesty -the  Empress  and  of  the  King  of 
Rome  has  produced  the  most  favorable  impression 
here.  I  know  that  the  Emperor  has  been  touched 
by  it,  as  a  new  proof  of  the  confidence  of  his  august 
son-in-law.  .  .  .  The  Minister  told  me  that  the 
French  court  must  have  seen  from  all  the  communi- 
cations made  to  it,  how  devoted  is  this  government 
to  the  principles  of  the  alliance,  and  how  interested 
it  is  in  the  happiness  and  prosperity  of  the  Imperial 
household  of  France.  The  well-known  feelings  of 
the  Emperor  for  his  beloved  daughter  leave  no  doubt 
on  this  subject." 

The  coronation  of  the  Empress  Marie  Louise  and 
of  the  King  of  Rome,  which  in  fact  never  took  place, 
had  been  set  for  March  7,  1813.  Count  Otto  thus 
spoke  of  it  in  his  despatch  of  January  19:  "Every 
one  knows,  my  Lord,  that  France  is  invulnerable  ;  she 
can  be  weakened  only  by  her  own  dissensions.  The 
solemn  ceremony  of  March  7  will  be  a  new  benefit 
from  our  regenerator,  and  a  neAV  bond  between  the 
French  Empire  and  Austria.  After  long  and  terrible 
disturbances,  this  bond,  which  the  wise  policy  of  His 
Majesty  has  formed  for  the  happiness  of  Europe  will 
be  the  warrant  of  a  long  repose  which  His  Majesty 
can  enjoy  by  busying  himself  solely  with  efforts 
to  raise  his  people  to  that  high  degree  of  strength, 
wealth,  and  greatness  to  which  his  genius  has  never 
ceased  to  aspire  since  the  memorable  day  of  Brumaire." 

After  this,  unfortunately  inexact,  prophecy,  the 
Ambassador  went  on :  "  Being  thus  for  a  long  time 


160  MARIE    LOUISA 


sent  out  as  a  scout  far  from  my 'country,  I  am  accus- 
tomed to  sound  an  alarm  at  the  first  sight  of  danger. 
But  Your  Excellency  would  judge  me  ill  if  he  should 
imagine  that  here  I  use  the  language  which  is  to  be 
found  in  my  letters.  Firm  confidence  in  the  princi- 
ples and  in  the  strength  of  my  government,  a  calm 
attitude  in  difficult  situations,  a  habit  of  yielding 
trifles  in  order  to  have  the  right  to  insist  upon  impor- 
tant matters,  great  consideration  for  the  self-respect 
of  the  Emperor  and  his  Minister,  and  an  unremitting 
effort  to  place  everything  in  the  light  of  their  inter- 
est rather  than  of  ours — that,  my  Lord,  is  the  method 
I  have  adopted ;  I  have  found  it  successful  in  other 
equally  difficult  missions,  and  it  has  received  His 
Majesty's  approbation  and  your  own." 

This  line  of  conduct  was  wise,  and  the  Ambassa- 
dor's position  was  certainly  as  good  as  circumstances 
permitted.  Yet  Napoleon,  whose  suspicions  were 
justly  aroused  by  the  strange  retreat  of  Prince 
Schwarzenberg's  auxiliary  corps  on  Cracovia,  and  by 
Austria's  vast  armaments,  imagined  that  some  one 
else  than  Count  Otto  would  more  easily  detect  the 
real  designs  of  the  Viennese  court,  and  early  in 
February  he  sent  as  his  successor  General  the  Count 
of  Narbonne.  So  far  from  uttering  the  least  com- 
plaint, Count  Otto  wrote,  February  6,  1813:  "After 
a  continuous  residence  of  eleven  years  in  a  foreign 
country,  Your  Excellency  will  readily  believe  that 
the  announcement  of  my  recall  has  given  me  great 
pleasure,  I  shall  lay  on  the  steps  of  His  Majesty's 


COUNT    OTTO.  161 


throne  the  expression  of  the  sentiments  which  have 
always  animated  me  in  his  service,  and  the  profound 
conviction  that  my  efforts  have  not  been  without 
their  use.  Whatever  may  be  the  task  with  which 
His  Majesty  may  in  future  deign  to  entrust  me,  he 
will  always  find  me  zealous  in  carrying  out  his  orders, 
and  in  giving  proofs  of  my  unbounded  devotion  to 
his  person  and  to  the  glory  of  his  reign." 

Count  Otto  remained  for  some  weeks  in  charge  of 
the  Embassy,  and  did  not  make  over  the  post  to  his 
successor  until  the  middle  of  March.  Up  to  the  end 
of  his  service  he  was  in  receipt  of  protestations  of 
friendship  from  the  Emperor  Francis  and  from  his 
Minister.  In  a  despatch  of  February  13,  1813,  he 
wrote :  "  Count  Metternich  said  to  me,  c  Our  alliance 
with  Russia  was  monstrous ;  it  had  but  one  ground, 
and  that  was  a  very  precarious  one :  the  exclusion 
of  English  commerce.  It  was  a  military  alliance, 
extorted  by  the  conqueror.  It  was  doomed  to  be 
broken.  Our  alliance,  on  the  other  hand,  rests  on 
the  most  natural  and  most  permanent  interests.  It 
must  be  as  lasting  as  the  needs  that  have  produced 
it.  It  is  we  who  have  sought  it,  and  we  concluded  it 
only  on  ripe  reflection.  If  we  had  it  to  make  over 
again,  we  should  not  draw  it  up  differently.  We 
desire  it  just  as  it  is.  It  will  secure  peace,  and  tend 
afterwards  to  strengthen  it.  When  the  Emperor  of 
Austria  decided  to  send  to  Paris  an  Ambassador 
Extraordinary  to  be  present  at  the  coronation  of  the 
King  of  Rome,  he  chose  Prince  Esterhazy,  the  mem- 


162  MATilE    LOUISE. 


ber  of  his  court  who  was  most  conspicuous  for  his 
wealth  and  the  vast  extent  of  his  estates.  The 
Prince  seemed  much  nattered  by  his  selection,  and 
he  intends  to  perform  his  duties  in  the  most  brilliant 
way.  He  will  leave  in  a  few  days.  Prince  Schwar- 
zenberg  arrived  yesterday.  He  intends  to  start  at 
once  for  Paris,  with  the  twofold  object  of  explain- 
ing to  His  Majesty  the  present  condition  of  affairs, 
and  of  giving  Europe  an  unmistakable  proof  of  the 
intentions  of  Austria,  by  showing  at  the  French 
court  the  commander  of  the  auxiliary  forces  report- 
ing to  his  commander  for  orders.'  Those  are  the 
Minister's  own  words.  He  takes  the  greatest  pains 
to  use  the  language  best  fitted  to  convince  the  courts 
of  London  and  Saint  Petersburg  of  the  close  harmony 
existing  between  France  and  Austria." 

Judging  from  the  remarks  which  Metternich  still 
made  to  Count  Otto,  the  Emperor  Francis's  sympa- 
thies appeared  to  be  for  Napoleon,  and  all  his  mis- 
trust to  be  of  the  Czar.  ""  Our  alliance  with  France," 
said  the  Minister,  "  is  so  necessary  that  if  you  were 
to  break  it  to-day,  we  should  propose  to  you  to 
re-establish  it  on  the  same  terms  and  with  the  same 
conditions.  France  has  done  us  much  liarm,  but  it 
is  for  our  interest  to  forget  the  past.  We  wish  to  be 
of  use  to  her  at  this  moment,  because  at  some  other 
time  she  will  be  able  to  render  the  same  service  to 
us.  This  alliance  is  not  the  result  of  war,  or  a  con- 
dition of  peace,  like  that  of  Tilsitt.  It  is  the  product 
of  ripe  reflection,  and  has  been  prepared  by  succes- 


COUNT    OTTO.  163 


sive,  spontaneous  advances,  as  well  as  by  the  close 
union  of  the  two  Imperial  families.  Receive  it, 
then,  as  a  fact,  and  regard  it  as  an  incontestable  truth 
that  we  seek  only  your  good;  that  we  no  longer 
fear  France,  but  the  Russians,  whose  power  you 
have  augmented  by  your  successive  concessions." 
(Despatch  of  February  17,  1813.) 

In  the  same  report  Count  Otto  spoke  at  length  of 
the  alarm  felt  by  the  government  about  revolutionary 
tendencies,  which  were  growing  every  day :  "  There 
is  another  enemy  whom  the  Cabinet  of  Vienna  fear 
much  more  than  the  Russians ;  that  is  the  populace, 
or  rather  the  spirit  of  resistance  which  is  beginning 
to  show  itself  all  over  Europe.  The  Hungarians 
have  proposed  to  the  government  to  organize  what 
they  call  an  insurrection ;  but  the  Cabinet  will  take 
good  care  not  to  accept  this  offer,  which  seems  to 
hide  a  secret  intention  of  arming  in  accordance  with 
the  Russian  designs.  The  conviction  prevails  here 
that  the  Russians,  in  concert  with  the  English,  are 
making  every  effort  to  persuade  the  populace  of 
different  nations  to  declare  themselves  independent 
of  their  rulers ;  that  the  greater  part  of  Europe  is 
threatened  by  a  terrible  conflagration;  that  all  the 
sovereigns  allied  with  France  have  become  so  unpop- 
ular that  the  slightest  breath  would  overthrow  them ; 
finally,  that  nearly  all  Germany  is  on  the  eve  of  the 
most  terrible  disturbances.  Silesia  especially  arouses 
distrust,  and  it  is  thought  certain  that  the  centre  of 
the  Russian  army  is  marching  directly  on  this  prov- 


164  MAEIE   LOUISE. 


ince  to  foment  an  outbreak.  From  a  mass  of  letters 
which  the  Minister  is  receiving  from  all  quarters,  it 
seems  that  the  Emperor  Alexander  is  acquiring  a 
moral  force  which  is  very  dangerous  in  the  existing 
circumstances.  His  most  pretentious  promises  are 
justified  by  his  gentleness,  which  extends  to  the 
Poles.  Austria's  attitude  will  be  able  to  stem  this 
torrent  until  our  armies  can  act.  She  is  convinced 
that  in  concert  with  France  she  can  put  an  end  to  this 
revolutionary  invasion,  and  she  wishes  to  make  use 
of  her  central  position  to  pacify  Europe.  Although 
she  does  not  count  much  on  the  success  of  her  first 
steps  towards  England,  she  will  thus  be  able  to 
make  Russia  uneasy  and  force  her-  to  peace.  But 
she  judges  a  congress  indispensable  for  this  happy 
result,  and  she  intends  by  means  of  the  continental 
peace  to  induce  England  to  make  one.  The  Minister 
said  that  France  once  at  peace  would  put  an  end 
to  the  temporary  importance  of  the  Russians,  and 
that  she  would  regain  all  the  ascendancy  which  her 
strength,  her  wealth,  and  her  moderation  ought  to 
guarantee  to  her  forever;  finally,  that  peace  alone 
will  be  for  France  and  for  Austria,  her  ally,  a  much 
more  solid  conquest  than  any  successful  campaign 
could  win." 

Count  Otto  always  thought  that  Marie  Louise's 
marriage  would  establish  a  useful  friendship  between 
the  two  Empires,  but  he  did  not  hide  the  perils  of 
the  situation,  and  especially  the  excitement  of  all 
Germany.  In  his  despatch  of  February  19,  1813,  he 


COUNT    OTTO.  165 


said:  "The  solemn  ceremony  preparing  in  France 
cannot  fail  to  produce  the  happiest  results,  by  show- 
ing His  Majesty's  just  confidence  in  an  Austrian 
Archduchess.  Never  has  a  princess  deserved  better 
of  the  nation,  or  been  placed  on  the  French  throne 
under  happier  auspices.  She  has  become  the  precious 
pledge  of  a  political  alliance,  which  but  for  her  would 
never  have  existed,  or,  at  least,  would  have  been 
extremely  precarious." 

After  this  homage  to  the  Empress,  the  diplomatist 
added  with  praiseworthy  frankness :  "  Europe  has 
need  of  calm ;  evils  of  all  sorts  have  too  long  weighed 
on  its  populace  not  to  irritate  them  to  the  furthest 
point.  I  beg  Your  Excellency  not  to  form  any  illu- 
sion on  the  feelings  that  have  been  seething  in  Ger- 
many for  six  years,  which  the  governments  are  no 
longer  able  to  restrain.  Probably  most  of  the  allied 
sovereigns  are  loyal ;  but  the  people  are  against  us, 
with  scarcely  an  exception,  and  only  a  long  peace 
can  efface  the  memory  of  their  sufferings.  Foreign 
agents,  who  may  express  other  views  in  Paris,  do  not 
deserve  your  confidence,  and  would  give  the  lie  to 
everything  generally  known  of  the  tone  reigning 
in  the  capitals  of  the  Confederation,  and  often  in 
their  rulers'  cabinets.  Never  has  a  government  more 
urgently  needed  to  conciliate  the  nation  than  Austria. 
It  is  hard  to  give  you  a  just  idea  of  the  agitation  that 
prevails  as  the  Russians  approach  the  frontier.  .  .  . 
Count  Metternich  said  to  me :  4 1  spend  four  or  five 
hours  every  day  with  the  Minister  of  Police.  Our 


lf>6  MAR  IV    un  18S, 


prisons  are  full  of  people  \\hom  \\  e  ha\e  had  arrested 
to  prevent,  the  harm  they  ini^ht  do.  K\cr\  da\  there 
is  danger  that  the  Kmpcror  will  be  insulted,  or  that, 
1  shall  he  assassinated.  Soon  the  Prussian  insurrec- 
tion will  spread  to  the  Rhine.  In  Westphalia,  the 
discontent  is  extreme.  The  explosion  will  come 
\\hen  it.  is  least  expected.  Nothing  can  e«pia,l  Rus- 
sia's crafty  policy.  Those  people  are  of  every  coun- 
try ;  they  speak  all  languages;  tliev  Hatter  ever\ 
passion.  They  demand  of  the  people  no  sacrifices, 
and  appear  in  the  iniise  of  liberators.  The  Confed- 
eration formed  under  your  auspices  at  Warsaw  has 
made  no  sensation  in  (Jalieia:  hut  as  soon  as  the 
Russians  had  mentioned  the  restoration  of  the  king- 
dom, the  leading  men  of  that  pro\  inee  not  ieed  a  ^real 
exeiteiiuMit,  and  told  us  e\er\  da\  of  their  anxiety.' 
While  speaking,  the  Minister's  eves  tilled  \\ith  tears; 
he  conft>ssed  that  iiie\ei\  hi'aneh  of  t  he  adniinist  ra 
tion  he  eneounlerod  an  opj>osition  which  rendered 
his  position  verv  painful.  VVTith  the  exception  of  the, 
Kinperor  and  Prince  Sch\\  a.r/.enher^,  he  did  not 
mention  a  single  man  of  mark  who  belonged  to  his 
party." 

Count  Otto  thus  concluded  his  energetic  despatch: 
lkln  this  state  of  things,  my  Lord,  I-' ranee  can  count 
only  on  herself  and  her  immense  force.  The  people, 
misled  hy  Russian  machinations,  are  ready  to  break 
c\er\  bond  \\hich  unites  them  to  the  reigninif  dynas- 
ties. The  next  campaign  cannot  fail  to  drixe  the 
Russians  back  to  their  icy  deserts.  P>ut  (icinianv. 


<  ojy  N  /•  "/ •/•".  1»''7 


Poland,     Prussia,     and     pcrhap.     An.liia     ilscll,     \\ill 
present  nothing  hut  centres  of  insunvelion,  hate,  and 


In    si  despatch    of    I'Yhrnary    ~S,    ('mini    Oil..  OBOC 
m.<re  insisted  on  (lie  extreme  B6flOti8&6M  of   the   litU 

alion,  mid  un  the  Ollea  of  ;il.inn  nilcicd  1»\  (  'onnl 
Mciicrnicli  :  "'I'lu-  |...sili,.n  «•!'  lliis  ","\  rnimriit,"  In- 
said,  "lu'ctunrs  more  dcliciili-  CMMV  d;i\  .  Tin-  Minis 
icr  liasslio\vn  nu»  docuitHMits  provin;;-  ilio  cxislcncc  of 
a  plol  lo  assassinate  him.  'I'wo  offloen  WGXt  oharged 
\\iili  lliis  deed.  Tlu-v  lia\c  IUM-II  anvslcd  as  u,-ll  as 
a  sc.-ivi  conunill.'.-  ,.f  \\liicli  llicy  \V«MV  ni(Mnl)crs. 
Hi'  slio\vcd  inr  otlu-r  |.apri-.s  disclosing  other  con- 
IpiraoiM  of  tin*  sort  fostered  liy  Iviissia.  klt  is  sup- 
|)osed,'  he  added,  k  lliat  the  Krnu-li  alliance  depends 
on  my  lite.  I  am  ready  to  lose  it  for  a.  principle 
\\lneh  I  deem  nsefnl  for  my  count  iv,  lull  \\  e  nro  so 
licit  we  have  to  ki-ej*  llu-so  plots  secret  in  order 
not.  lo  ad<l  to  Ihe  excitement.  .  .  .  <  >nr  position 
\vonld  l>e  less  jtainl'nl  if  yon  \\onld  he  hanker  with 
US.  We  Keep  \  on  informed  of  all  onr  \n\\s  .md 
actions.  >'oii  niaKe  no  reply  :  we  are  left  in  al.  ...Ini  e 

Lgnorftnoe of  jour politioa]  plans.     |),,  trc.it  ns  liko 

friends,  anxious    to  HOl'VO   yon,  and    .;'i\c    n        n 
h\    ha\  in;;-  confidence  in  ns.'  " 

This     confidence     did     not     exist     on    either    side. 
Napoleon    desired    war,  and    his    father  in  law    d< 

Napoleon  was  anxious  to  retain  e\  ei  -\  I  In  IM-, 
and  Ihr  I'an|»eroi  I^ranei;  thoifdil  he  should  tn\c  np 
some  of  his  territory.  The  <  '.ihniel  of  tin-  Tnilciic •. 


168  MAUIE    LOUISE. 


refused  any  clear  explanation  with  the  Cabinet  of 
Vienna,  because  it  felt  that  only  by  equivocation 
could  be  kept  up,  if  not  the  reality,  at  least  the 
appearance  of  harmony.  It  must  be  acknowledged 
in  justice  to  Count  Otto,  that  he  neglected  nothing 
to  free  his  sovereign's  mind  from  dangerous  illusions, 
and  to  set  before  him  in  true  colors  the  condition  of 
Germany  in  general,  and  of  Austria  in  particular. 
Napoleon  would  have  done  well  if  he  had  listened  to 
the  wise  and  respectful  advice  of  this  diplomatist,  a 
man  of  honor,  who,  at  the  risk  of  displeasing  his 
master,  had  the  courage  to  tell  him  the  whole  truth. 


XI. 

THE   COUNT   OF   NARBONNE. 

YILLEMAIN  says  at  the  beginning  of  his  Con- 
temporary Memories,  Historical  and  Literary: 
"  I  do  not  believe  that  at  the  end  of  the  last  century, 
and  in  the  first  years  of  this,  two  epochs  crowded 
with  extraordinary  events  and  with  men  famous  in 
politics  and  war,  there  was  a  rarer  and  more  culti- 
vated mind,  a  more  generous  heart,  a  man  more  agree- 
able in  the  commerce  of  life,  or  one  bolder,  more  sen- 
sible, or  more  capable  of  great  things,  than  Count 
Louis  de  Narbonne,  a  Minister  of  King  Louis  XVI. 
under  the  Legislative  Assembly,  and  an  aide-de-camp 
of  Napoleon,  in  1812.  Fortune  alone  was  wanting 
to  this  man,  whose  merit,  in  the  judgment  of  the 
best  and  wisest  heads  of  the  Empire,  such  as  Daru 
and  Mollien,  seemed  sufficient  for  anything.  Al- 
though her  favorite  on  a  few  rare,  memorable  occa- 
sions, even  then  she  offered  him  only  situations  that 
were  too  far  gone,  too  fatal  and  desperate,  in  which 
one  thought  of  winning  honor  and  then  dying,  but 
not  of  repairing  too  great  errors,  or  of  putting  a  stop 
to  their  inevitable  consequences." 

169 


170  M All  IE    LOUISE. 


Napoleon  had  a  special  fondness  for  the  Count  of 
Narbonne,  appreciating  to  the  fullest  extent  his  edu- 
cation, courage,  and  agreeable  character.  He  drew 
back  from  his  exile  this  e'migre'  who  had  lived  out  of 
France  for  seventeen  years,  and  in  1809  restored  him 
to  the  French  army  with  the  grade  of  Division  General. 
The  Emperor  whose  instincts  were  at  bottom  very 
aristocratic,  delighted  to  see  in  the  former  knight  of 
honor  of  one  of  the  daughters  of  Louis  XV.  a  finished 
type  of  courtesy,  which  recalled  at  the  court  of  the 
Tuileries  the  best  traditions  of  the  court  of  Ver- 
sailles. After  he  had  selected  this  former  Minister 
of  War  of  Louis  XVI.  for  his  aide-de-camp,  he  con- 
gratulated himself  on  the  discovery  that  no  officer  of 
his  guards  was  more  at  his  ease  in  a  drawing-room,  or 
more  light-hearted  in  a  bivouac.  In  the  disastrous 
retreat  from  Russia  no  one  displayed  more  coolness 
and  courage.  Hence,  Napoleon,  in  the  beginning  of 
1813,  thought  at  a  critical  and  decisive  moment  na 
one  would  so  well  represent  him  at  the  court  of 
Vienna  as  this  man  of  the  old  regime,  whose  solid 
and  brilliant  qualities  could  not  fail  to  be  recognized 
by  the  high  Austrian  nobility. 

In  the  Emperor's  eyes,  the  Count  of  Narbonne, 
who  had  entered  the  diplomatic  service  only  a  few 
months  before,  was  a  model  diplomatist.  We  read 
in  the  Memorial  of  Saint  Helena :  "  Speaking  of  his 
Ambassadors,  the  Emperor  remarked  that  M.  de  Nar- 
bonne was  the  only  one  who  really  deserved  this 
title,  and  had  really  discharged  its  duties.  And  this, 


THE    COUNT    OF   NARBONNE.  171 

he  said,  he  did  by  his  personal  advantages,  not  merely 
those  of  his  intelligence,  but  much  more  those  of  his 
old-fashioned  morals  and  manners,  and  of  his  name ; 
for  as  long  as  one  has  simply  to  give  orders,  the  first 
comer  will  do ;  nothing  more  is  required ;  possibly  an 
aide-de-camp  is  the  best  person  to  employ.  But  when 
one  is  compelled  to  negotiate,  it's  a  different  thing ; 
then  one  ought  to  send  to  the  old  aristocracy  of 
Europe  representatives  of  that  aristocracy,  for  it  is 
after  all  a  sort  of  Freemasonry.  If  an  Otto,  an 
Andreossi  enter  the  drawing-rooms  of  Vienna,  all 
expression  of  opinions  is  hushed,  all  easy  intercourse 
ceases;  they  are  intruders,  outsiders;  the  mysteries 
are  interrupted.  It's  just  the  other  way  with  a  Nar- 
bonne,  because  with  him  they  have  affinity,  sympathy, 
identity ;  and  a  woman  of  the  old  nobility  may  grant 
every  favor  to  a  plebeian  without  betraying  to  him 
the  secrets  of  the  aristocracy." 

We  incline  to  think  that  Napoleon  exaggerates 
a  little  the  importance  of  the  aristocratic  element  in 
diplomatic  affairs,  and  we  must  say  that  in  spite  of 
charming  manners  and  fascinating  intelligence,  this 
model  Ambassador  did  not  prevent  Austria  from 
declaring  war  with  France.  But  to  quote  again 
from  the  Memorial :  "  The  Emperor,"  says  the  Count 
of  Las  Cases,  "  was  very  fond  of  M.  de  Narbonne ; 
he  was  much  attached  to  him  and  mourned  his  loss 
deeply.  He  made  him  his  aide-de-camp  only  because 
Marie  Louise,  he  said,  through  some  intrigue  of 
her  household,  refused  to  receive  him  as  her  knight 


172  MARIE    LOUISE. 


of  honor ;  a  post  for  which,  Napoleon  added,  he  was 
exactly  suited.  Until  he  was  appointed,  he  added, 
we  were  dupes  of  Austria.  In  less  than  a  fortnight 
M.  de  Narbonne  had  seen  through  everything,  and 
Metternich  was  greatly  annoyed  by  this  appointment. 
Yet,  said  the  Emperor,  how  complicated  fate  is !  It 
was,  perhaps,  the  very  success  of  M.  de  Narbonne 
that  wrought  my  ruin.  His  abilities  were  at  any  rate 
rather  injurious  to  me  than  useful ;  for  Austria,  seeing 
that  she  was  found  out,  threw  aside  her  mask  and 
hastened  her  action.  Had  we  been  blinder,  she  would 
have  been  more  reserved,  and  slower.  She  would 
have  prolonged  for  some  time  her  natural  indecision, 
and  meanwhile  other  chances  might  have  arisen." 

Let  us  now  hastily  run  over  the  most  important 
despatches  of  the  Count  of  Narbonne  which  we  have 
examined  in  the  archives  of  the  Ministry  of  Foreign 
Affairs  ;  they  are  mainly  unpublished. 

The  new  Ambassador  wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano, 
March  22,  1813  :  "  Your  Excellency  will,  I  hope,  for- 
give me,  if  in  these  first  moments  after  my  arrival, 
which  are  necessarily  taken  up  by  duties  and  cares  of 
every  sort,  my  correspondence  is  far  less  useful  than 
that  of  my  predecessor.  I  can  only  speak  of  my 
presentation  to  their  Majesties  and  to  the  members 
of  the  Imperial  family.  Externally  everything  went 
off  in  the  most  decorous  way,  and  my  first  audience 
with  the  Emperor,  who  treated  me  with  the  utmost 
kindness,  had,  outside  of  his  genuine  interest  in  the 
health  and  happiness  of  his  august  son-in-law,  no 


THE    COUNT    OF   NAEBONNE.  173 

other  result  than  a  number  of  tolerably  vague  speeches 
on  the  universal  necessity  of  peace ;  on  the  strength 
of  the  army  which  France  was  about  to  send  forth ; 
on  the  decision  already  taken  by  the  King  of  Prussia 
who  had  been  forced  to  it,  the  Emperor  said,  by 
unanimous  opinions  of  all  classes  of  his  subjects.  It 
was  easy  for  me  to  lay  weight  on  the  terrible  danger 
there  was  for  princes  who  preferred  obeying  to  com- 
manding, and  who  let  themselves  be  driven  to  what 
had  already  reduced  Prussia  from  the  rank  of  a  great 
power,  and  was  possibly  to  complete  its  ruin.  The 
Emperor  agreed  that  this  state  of  things  was  already 
one  of  revolution  which  was  more  disastrous  than 
any  defeat ;  this  naturally  gave  me  an  opportunity  to 
say  that  no  Prince  who  had  received  so  many  proofs  of 
the  devotion  of  his  people  could  fear  to  be  abandoned 
by  them  when  he  ordered  what  alone  could  assure 
their  present  and  future  tranquillity.  A  promise  to 
assent  to  whatever  the  Emperor  shall  do  or  desire  to 
bring  about  peace  ;  the  necessity  of  a  great  develop- 
ment of  the  forces  of  France  to  bring  this  about,  a 
thorough  knowledge  of  the  vastness  of  its  resources 
and  their  great  power  were  then  mentioned.  The 
sincerity  with  which  all  this  was  uttered  tempted  me 
to  speak  at  once  of  an  active  co-operation  which  should 
abridge  and  put  a  speedy  end  to  all  difficulties  ;  but  I 
discerned  his  fear  of  any  discussion  which  for  me  too 
would  have  presented  many  difficulties  that  were  not 
settled  before  I  left  Paris ;  moreover  I  wished  to 
avoid  the  appearance  of  seeking  an  immediate  and 
direct  answer." 


174  MARIE   LOUISE. 


So  for  both  Emperor  and  Ambassador  the  only  way 
of  seeming  to  have  an  understanding  was  by  avoiding 
an  explanation.  "The  Emperor,"  M.  de  Narbonne 
continued,  "appeared  grateful  for  my  reserve,  and 
spoke  with  pleasure  of  the  happiness  which  his 
daughter,  Her  Majesty  the  Empress,  enjoyed." 

Then  the  Ambassador  spoke  of  his  reception  by  the 
Empress  of  Austria,  who  was  compelled  to  conceal 
her  hatred  of  Napoleon  and  of  France  beneath  the 
forms  of  politeness.  "  My  audience  with  the  Em- 
press gave  me  no  light.  She  was  very  glad  that  the 
Emperor  had  returned  in  good  health,  and  sympathized 
with  t)ur  Empress's  pleasure  who  is  always  writing 
about  her  numberless  grounds  for  content.  There 
were  many  affectionate  questions  about  the  King  of 
Rome,  many  inquiries  about  the  state  of  the  arts  in 
Paris ;  very  little  was  said  about  the  last  campaign, 
and  there  were  numerous  most  civil  commonplaces. 
The  Empress's  faintness  put  an  end  to  the  audience." 

As  for  Metternich,  he  greeted  the  new  Ambassador 
with  extreme  courtesy,  but  he  did  not  hesitate  to  say 
that  Napoleon  ought  to  give  up  some  of  his  territory. 
M.  de  Narbonne  wrote,  March  24  :  "  M.  de  Metternich 
said  that  if  the  Emperor  of  France  was  willing  to  be 
a  monarch  thrice  as  strong  as  Louis  XIV.,  and  master 
of  Europe  solely  by  the  weight  of  his  strength,  his 
position,  and  his  genius,  all  difficulties  would  soon 
arrange  themselves ;  but  that  it  was  necessary  that 
England  should  acquire  a  conviction  of  this  truth ; 
that  this  power  alone  had  the  indisputable  power  of 


THE    COUNT    OF    NARBONNE.  175 

treating  directly  with  France,  and  that  he  believed, 
for  example,  that  she  would  never  consent  to  leave  us 
Holland,  unless  new  and  repeated  triumphs  on  the 
part  of  the  Emperor  should  accustom  her  to  the  neces- 
sity of  giving  way.  ...  I  should  be  unjust  to  M.  de 
Metternich  if  I  seemed  to  infer  from  what  I  have 
said  that  he  is  not  perfectly  loyal  to  us  in  every 
respect.  A  thousand  reasons  incline  me  to  think 
thus." 

The  Count  of  Narbonne  was  at  first  over  optimistic ; 
but  a  few  days  sufficed  to  give  him  an  exacter  appre- 
ciation of  the  state  of  things.  "  It  seems  impossible, 
my  Lord,"  he  said  in  his  despatch  of  April  1, 1813,  "  to 
refuse  to  believe  that  the  excitement  now  prevailing 
threatens  Germany  with  a  most  violent,  wide-spread, 
and  possibly,  sudden  explosion.  Every  country  into 
which  any  Russians  have  been  able  to  make  their 
way  seems  to  have  earnestly  set  about  to  turning 
every  German  into  an  implacable  foe  of  France;  I 
say  every  German,  because  they  pretend  to  recognize 
no  national  differences ;  and  now,  more  than  ever, 
publications  on  the  present  state  of  affairs  urge  the 
disregard  of  whatever  might  weaken  the  common 
hatred  of  us,  which  should  inspire  every  one  who 
lives  between  the  Rhine  and  the  Niemen.  These 
publications  infest  the  whole  Austrian  Empire.  In  a 
word,  the  whole  condition  of  things  here  repeats  that 
of  Prussia  before  the  battle  of  Jena.  It  is  plainer  to 
me  than  ever  that  on  our  side  we  have,  as  you  truly 
said  to  me,  only  the  Emperor,  M.  de  Metternich,  and 


176  MARIE    LOUISE. 


M.  de  Schwarzenberg.  Doubtless,  the  Emperor  holds 
to  France  by  interest,  loyalty,  and  sentiment ;  but 
surrounded  as  he  is  by  our  enemies,  fed  with  all  the 
poisons  presented  to  him  in  every  form,  terrified  by 
the  consequences  that  may  follow  every  decision,  it 
is  almost  impossible  that  he  should  not  often  hesitate 
and  grant  concessions  which  will  only  strengthen  our 
foes." 

Austria  was  to  change  gradually,  but  quickly,  from 
an  active  alliance  to  a  passive  one ;  then  to  neutrality ; 
then  to  armed  mediation ;  finally,  to  a  declaration  of 
war  against  her  former  ally.  M.  de  Narbonne  fore- 
saw and  predicted  this  threefold  phase  of  the  Aus- 
trian policy.  "  As  for  M.  de  Metternich,"  he  added 
in  the  despatch  of  April  1,  1813,  "  I  am  always  glad 
to  repeat  it,  I  believe  in  his  complete  good  faith 
toward  the  French  policy ;  but  only  so  far  as  this 
shall  lead  us  to  peace ;  and  since  every  day  inclines  me 
more  to  respect  his  acuteness  and  ability,  I  wonder  if 
it  would  be  strange  that  in  case  he  saw  this  peace  im- 
possible, he  might  not  think  it  well  to  say :  '  I  have 
above  all  things  wished  to  try  to  secure  peace,  the 
sole,  real  happiness  of  my  country,  and  for  that  pur- 
pose I  have  braved  everything;  but  I  have  not 
neglected  to  prepare  for  war.  France  has  refused 
to  agree  to  reasonable  propositions  which  had  been 
accepted  by  all  the  other  powers ;  now  I  propose  to 
place  Austria  at  the  head  of  your  enemies,  and  to 
resume  in  Europe  our  proper  attitude  and  rank.' 
Cannot  this  language  and  this  conduct  insure  Aus- 


THE    COUNT    OF   N  ARSON  NE.  177 

tria  the  preservation  of  its  position,  which  a  change 
of  policy,  without  apparent  cause,  would  compel  it  to 
abandon  ?  "  Alas  !  why  did  not  Napoleon  pay  atten- 
tion to  this  really  prophetic  despatch  ? 

One  of  the  causes  for  the  protracted  hesitation  of 
the  Cabinet  of  Vienna  to  pronounce  against  France, 
was  the  dread  of  the  revolutionary  ideas  promulgated 
by  Napoleon's  enemies.  M.  de  Narbonne  wrote  to 
the  Duke  of  Bassano,  April  6, 1813 :  "  I  had  the  honor 
of  informing  you  that  M.  de  Metternich  appeared  quite 
as  alarmed  as  I  at  the  terrible  consequences  that  would 
follow  the  appeal  to  the  people,  which  now,  all  the  ene- 
mies of  France  are  making, — an  appeal  which  seems  to 
transform  the  counsellors  of  Russia,  Prussia,  and  Swe- 
den into  a  committee  of  public  safety.  General  Witt- 
genstein's proclamations  naturally  brought  up  this 
matter.  M.  de  Metternich  thinks  that  the  absurdity  of 
these  proclamations  has  diminished  their  danger.  But 
that  of  Kutusoff,  also  addressed  to  the  Germans,  whom 
it  treats  as  one  people,  without  speaking  of  Austria, 
especially  attracts  his  attention.  In  fact,  it  speaks 
in  the  name  of  Russia  and  Prussia,  which  affirm  that 
the  shameful  yoke  of  the  Confederation  of  the  Rhine 
is  broken,  of  restoring  liberty  to  Germany  by  means 
of  a  constitution  for  which  both  kings  and  people 
shall  be  consulted.  4  Is  it  a  National  Assembly,  or  a 
Cortes,  that  their  constitution  promises  us  ? '  asks  M. 
de  Metternich.  '  What  a  fire-brand  is  thrown  on  what 
is  already  ablaze  ! ' ' 

The  Austrian  Minister  added,  "  But  let  the  Emperor 


178  MARIE    LOUISE. 


Napoleon  help  us  to  resist  this  movement  which  is  as 
violent  as  it  is  general.  Now  that  you  are  here,  you 
can  see  the  strength  and  the  skill  with  which  the 
Austrian  government  has  to  contend.  We  may  de- 
spise and  triumph  over  the  clamors  of  society  which 
urges  war  with  the  wildest  passion ;  but  the  reason- 
able and  reasoning  majority  of  the  nation,  which 
desires  nothing  but  peace,  and  has  hitherto  been 
held  back  only  by  the  hope  of  obtaining  it,  how  is 
that  to  be  satisfied,  if,  as  Count  Bubna  writes,  the 
Emperor  of  France  should  consider  himself  driven 
to  a  war  to  the  death  with  Prussia  and  Russia,  in 
which  we  cannot  feel  sure  that  we  shall  not  be  impli- 
cated ?  Be  sure  that  if  Prince  Schwarzenberg's  army 
corps,  which  the  Emperor  Napoleon  has  blamed  for 
not  going  to  Minsk,  could  have  been  there,  Avhich 
would  have  made  it  experience  the  fate  of  the  rest  of 
the  allied  army  on  its  return,  nothing  could  have 
prevented  the  Austrian  army  from  marching  against 
the  French,  whatever  the  government  might  have 
tried  to  do." 

Metternich  no  longer  tried  to  conceal  his  thoughts. 
"  The  Austrian  government,"  he  said,  at  the  end  of 
his  interview  with  M.  de  Narbonne,  "  is  like  a  swim- 
mer struggling  with  strength  and  courage  against 
the  current,  and  hoping  to  succeed  ;  it  would  be  cer- 
tain, if  the  Emperor  Napoleon  were  willing  to  aid  it 
a  little ;  that  is  to  say,  if  he  were  to  consent  to  condi- 
tions of  peace  equally  compatible  with  his  glory  and 
his  honor." 


THE    COUNT    OF   NARBONNE.  179 

M.  de  Narbonne  did  not  confine  himself  to  question- 
ing the  court  and  the  ministry  whose  real  intentions 
he  soon  divined ;  he  examined  with  an  intelligent  eye 
all  classes  of  Austrian  society.  He  wrote  to  the  Duke 
of  Bassano,  April  17,  1813 :  "  Turning  to  the  petty 
details  of  the  spectacle  offered  at  this  moment  by  the 
city  and  court  of  Vienna,  I  find  every  cafe*  and  place  of 
meeting  full  of  nothing  but  hatred  of  the  French ;  they 
are  charged  with  the  desperate  financial  condition, 
the  ruin  of  commerce,  and  the  horrible  dearness  of 
everything  not  of  the  strictest  necessity.  If  I  observe 
the  army,  I  find  no  officers  who  do  not  tremble  at  the 
idea  of  making  war  for  us,  and  none  who,  thinking 
they  will  no  longer  have  to  face  the  Frenchmen  who 
have  so  often  humiliated  them,  do  not  believe  and  say 
that  the  time  is  come  when  they  can  easily  recover 
with  interest  their  honor  and  the  territory  of  Austria. 
I  need  not  repeat  what  has  so  often  been  told  Your 
Excellency  about  the  spirit  which  animates  society." 

Encouraged  by  events,  Metternich,  while  main- 
taining an  air  of  perfect  courtesy,  went  so  far  as  to 
give  it  to  be  understood  that  Austria  would  be  glad 
to  see  Napoleon  lay  aside  his  title  of  Protector  of  the 
Confederation  of  the  Rhine.  "  If  Prussia  and  Russia," 
he  said  to  M.  de  Narbonne,  "  regard  the  suppression 
of  the  title  of  Protector  of  the  Confederation  of 
the  Rhine  as  an  indispensable  condition  of  peace,  we 
cannot  in  conscience  fight  to  defend  it  and  to  assume 
its  preservation."  The  Ambassador  in  reporting  the 
Austrian  Minister's  remarks,  in  his  despatch  of  April 


180  MARIE   LOUISE. 

10,  adds,  "  I  replied  that  in  such  a  proposition  I  could 
see  nothing  but  a  somewhat  extraordinary  desire  to 
humiliate  the  Emperor,  who  did  not  like  conditions 
of  that  sort.  At  this,  M.  de  Metternich  seemed 
frightened  at  the  mere  idea  that  I  could  credit  him 
with  a  desire  of  that  sort,  and  I  must  confess  that  I 
have  never  heard  him  utter  a  word  which  was  not 
an  expression  of  his  respect  and  admiration  for  the 
Emperor's  person  and  genius,  and,  above  all,  never 
one  which  had  the  slightest  air  of  a  threat." 

The  Count  of  Narbonne  clearly  discerned  beneath 
the  formulas  of  official  politeness  the  real  plan  of  the 
Cabinet  of  Vienna,  and  his  only  hope,  though  it  was 
but  a  vague  one,  was  not  the  co-operation,  but  the 
neutrality  of  Austria.  He  wrote,  April  14,  1813 : 
"  The  government,  even  if  it  were  as  well  disposed 
in  our  favor  as  my  predecessor  liked  to  hope,  would 
not  put  upon  its  shoulders  the  burthen  of  universal 
blame  by  hoisting  the  French  colors.  But  a  complete, 
absolute  neutrality  would,  I  think,  prove  an  attrac- 
tion ;  at  the  present  moment  it  would  allay  the 
general  agitation  and  satisfy  the  dignity  of  the  gov- 
ernment by  giving  it  an  air  of  resoluteness  as  well 
as  the  spirit  of  expectation  and  fickleness  which 
reappears  at  every  epoch.  .  .  .  There  remains  to 
examine  what  should  be  the  guaranty  of  such  neu- 
trality. That  is  a  question  which  I  am  not  called 
upon  to  solve.  Doubtless  the  surest  would  be  the 
success  which  awaits  His  Majesty's  arms.  I  will  only 
add  that  if  by  force  of  circumstances  which  it  is  im- 


THE    COUNT    OF    NARBONNE.  181 


possible  to  foresee,  these  successes  should  be  lessened 
or  deferred,  co-operation,  supposing  it  possible,  would 
at  once  change  neutrality  into  absolute  defection. 
The  Austrian  government  is  not  in  a  position  to 
withstand  the  force  of  public  opinion.  The  feelings 
of  alliance  and  affection  for  France,  which  the  Em- 
peror preserves  with  more  constancy  than  firmness,  if 
I  may  so  say,  are  insufficient  to  raise  him  above  the 
exasperated  passions  of  the  multitude." 

At  the  moment  Napoleon  was  about  to  open  the 
campaign,  M.  de  Narbonne,  who  was  more  a  man  of 
honor  than  a  courtier,  deemed  it  a  patriotic  duty  to 
inform  him  of  the  truth.  "  Everything  convinces  me," 
he  wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano,  April  23, 1813, "  of 
the  understanding  which  exists  between  the  Emperor 
of  Austria  and  our  enemies,  and  I  confess  that  I 
think  him  almost  ready  to  support  all  the  proposi- 
tions which  Austria  will  finally  announce,  and  which 
will  be,  I  think,  very  different  from  what  our  Sover- 
eign has  the  right  to  expect.  I  could  not  help  being 
extremely  struck  by  hearing  the  Emperor  of  Austria 
say  in  a  very  peremptory  way  that  his  forces  shall 
never  be  employed  for  our  master  unless  he  shall 
accept  reasonable  propositions,  by  his  keeping  silence 
when  I  asked  him  who  shall  be  the  judge  of  these  con- 
ditions, and  what  he  will  do  if  he  is  not  satisfied 
with  them.  It  is  impossible  not  to  perceive  in  this 
silence  exactly  what  has  been  repeated  to  me  by  M. 
de  Metternich,  that,  in  this  last  case,  taking  part 
against  us  would  be  the  natural  result  of  his  position 


182  MARIE    LOUISE. 


as  armed  mediator."  At  the  risk  of  offence,  the 
Count  of  Narbomie  had  the  noble  courage  to  tell  his 
sovereign  what  he  thought.  By  this  loyal  frankness, 
he  followed  the  dictates  of  his  conscience,  and  impar- 
tial history  has  no  fault  to  find  with  him. 


XII. 

THE    REGENCY. 

WHILE  Europe  was  preparing  to  enter  upon  a 
struggle  for  life  or  death  with  Napoleon,  he, 
as  confident,  as  eager,  as  in  the  glow  of  his  youth, 
was  arming  for  the  colossal  war  with  untiring  ac- 
tivity. It  seemed  that  he  had  but  to  stamp  on  the 
ground  to  call  forth  numberless  legions.  In  three 
months  an  army  of  three  hundred  thousand  men  was 
raised,  equipped,  and  brought  together.  As  General 
de  Se'gur  says :  "  At  any  hour  of  the  day  or  night  the 
Emperor,  whatever  he  was  doing,  could  have  told  the 
numbers,  the  composition,  the  strength  of  every  one 
of  the  thousands  of  detachments  of  every  branch  of 
the  service  which  he  had  set  in  movement  from  every 
part  of  the  Empire,  the  way  they  were  uniformed  and 
equipped,  the  number  of  marches  each  one  had  to 
make,  the  day,  the  place,  even  the  hour  at  which  each 
one  was  to  arrive." 

His  language  had  never  been  haughtier.  He  went 
in  pomp  at  the  head  of  a  grand  procession  to  open 
the  sittings  of  the  Legislative  Body,  January  14, 
1813,  and  said  with  an  air  of  great  dignity:  "The 

183 


184  MAE  IE    LOUISE. 


disasters  produced  by  the  severity  of  the  climate 
have  thoroughly  demonstrated  the  strength  and 
greatness  of  this  Empire  which  is  founded  on  the 
co-operation  and  the  affection  of  fifty  millions  of  cit- 
izens and  on  the  geographical  wealth  of  the  finest 
countries  in  the  world.  It  is  with  keen  satisfaction 
that  we  have  seen  our  people  of  the  Kingdom  of 
Italy,  those  of  Holland  and  of  the  united  depart- 
ments rivalling  with  the  French,  and  feeling  that  they 
have  no  other  hope,  future,  or  happiness  than  in  the 
consolidation  and  triumph  of  the  great  Empire.  .  .  . 
The  French  dynasty  reigns  and  will  continue  to  reign 
in  Spain.  ...  I  am  satisfied  with  the  conduct  of  all 
my  allies.  I  shall  not  abandon  one  of  them;  I  shall 
maintain  the  integrity  of  their  states.  The  Russians 
shall  return  to  their  terrible  climate."  Alas!  every 
sentence  was  a  new  illusion.  The  new  Frenchmen 
were  about  to  turn  against  France ;  the  French 
dynasty  in  Spain  was  to  be  driven  out.  It  was  not 
Napoleon  who  was  to  abandon  his  allies,  but  his  allies 
who  were  to  abandon  Napoleon.  The  Russians  were 
not  to  return  to  their  terrible  climate ;  it  was  our 
magnificent  climate  to  which  they  were  to  advance. 
The  great  man  was  no  longer  a  prophet. 

Forgetting  the  insignificance  of  family  alliances 
where  politics  were  concerned,  and  the  many  wars 
waged  in  the  Middle  Ages  and  in  modern  times 
between  closely  related  sovereigns,  Napoleon  imag- 
ined that  the  Emperor  Francis  would  never  be  able 
to  abandon  the  cause  of  his  daughter  and  Ins  grand- 


THE    REGENCY.  185 


son,  and  with  a  simplicity  unworthy  of  so  mighty  a 
genius,  he  fancied  that  a  few  friendly  letters  and  a 
few  affectionate  words  would  outweigh  the  interests 
and  ambitions  of  the  Austrian  policy.  Marie  Louise 
readily  lent  herself  to  her  husband's  illusions,  and 
wrote  to  her  father  letters  full  of  serene  confidence, 
as  if  the  thought  had  never  entered  her  head  that 
clouds  could  arise  between  Austria  and  France.  The 
young  Empress's  courtiers  were  never  tired  of  speak- 
ing to  her  of  her  husband's  certain  triumph.  She 
imagined  that  he  was  invincible.  All  who  went  near 
her,  the  members  of  the  Austrian  Embassy  as  well  as 
the  French  themselves,  spoke  in  the  most  confident 
terms.  No  disagreeable  truth  ever  came  to  her  ears. 
Happy  as  a  wife  and  as  a  mother,  she  looked  forward 
to  the  future  with  calmness,  and  golden  visions  floated 
above  the  palaces  in  which  she  lived. 

Marie  Louise's  letters  to  her  father,  even  after  the 
campaign  had  begun,  were  sprightly.  "  The  Em- 
peror," she  wrote  to  him,  "sends  many  kind  messages ; 
he  displays  much  affection  for  you,  and  not  a  day 
passes  that  he  does  not  tell  me  how  much  he  loves 
you,  especially  since  he  saw  you  at  Dresden.  .  .  . 
The  Emperor  begs  me  to  assure  you  of  his  friendship 
and  to  write  to  you  often.  You  may  judge  whether 
he  has  to  tell  me  twice.  .  .  .  You  will  have  seen  in 

x 

the  newspapers  all  the  patriotic  gifts  the  French  have 
made  to  their  Sovereign.  The  people  show  the 
warmest  devotion ;  this  love  moves  me  to  tears.  .  .  . 
The  Emperor  is  very  well ;  very  cheerful,  in  spite  of 


186  MARIE    LOUISE. 


his  hard  work.  It  is  said  that  he  already  has  a  large 
number  of  troops.  More  are  going  to  start  in  a  few 
days.  It  is  really  touching  to  see  the  activity,  the 
patriotism,  and  the  military  ardor  of  the  nation.  .  .  . 
The  armies  are  said  to  be  magnificent.  The  Emperor 
is  perfectly  satisfied,  and  hopes  soon  to  force  his  ene- 
mies to  make  a  lasting  peace." 

Before  opening  the  campaign  Napoleon  wished  to 
visit  the  Invalides  with  the  Empress.  This  visit 
took  place  March  7,  1813.  The  old  soldiers  were 
drawn  up  in  line  of  battle  in  the  large  courtyard. 
The  Emperor  talked  with  them  for  some  time  and 
decorated  a  good  many.  Then  he  went  into  the 
church  with  Marie  Louise  and  heard  a  Te  Deum. 
After  that  he  visited  with  the  Empress  the  bakery, 
the  refectories,  and  the  infirmary  where  four  cente- 
narians, who  had  been  present  at  the  battle  of  Fon- 
tenoy,  were  presented  to  him. 

Napoleon,  who  was  in  perfect  health,  robust,  full 
of  hope,  and  more  eager  than  ever  for  war,  impa- 
tiently awaited  the  opening  of  the  conflict.  Yet 
wishing  to  provide  for  the  chance  that  he  might  be 
slain,  and  recalling  Malet's  conspiracy,  he  decided, 
before  leaving,  to  make  the  Empress  Regent.  Hith- 
erto, during  the  Sovereign's  absence  from  the  Empire, 
the  government  had  been  confided  to  a  Council  of 
Ministers,  presided  over  by  Cambace*res.  But  it  might 
happen  that  a  Minister  should  die  or  fall  ill,  and  in 
that  case  no  one  was  authorized  to  assume  his  signa- 
ture unless  by  an  Imperial  decree.  Napoleon  wished 


THE  REGENCY.  187 


to  obviate  this  inconvenience  by  establishing  a  re- 
gency. He  had  an  investigation  made  of  what  had 
been  done  in  France  at  different  periods  of  its  history 
when  Regents  had  governed  the  country.  Then 
when  all  was  ready  he  summoned  a  Privy  Council  at 
the  Elysee,  March  30,  1813,  to  which  were  admitted 
the  Empress,  the  Queen  of  Spain,  and  Queen  Hor- 
tense.  After  the  reading  of  the  decree  establishing 
the  regency,  Marie  Louise  swore  to  discharge  her 
duty  as  a  good  wife,  a  good  mother,  and  a  good 
Frenchwoman,  according  to  the  laws  and  constitu- 
tions of  the  Empire,  and  to  surrender  her  powers 
whenever  the  Emperor  should  desire.  She  sent  a 
messenger  to  Vienna  to  inform  her  father  of  her  new 
dignity.  "You  can  readily  understand,"  she  wrote, 
"  how  much  I  am  flattered  by  this  new  proof  of  the 
Emperor's  confidence."  March  31  Marie  Louise  was 
present  at  the  Council  of  the  Ministers.  She  was 
intelligent,  attentive,  and  seemed  to  take  a  serious 
interest  in  the  business.  When  the  reports  of  the 
police  were  about  to  be  read,  Napoleon  listened  to  a 
few,  and  said  to  Archchancellor  Cambacdrds :  "  It  is 
not  necessary  to  sully  a  young  woman's  mind  with 
certain  details." 

To  lighten  the  task  which  the  regency  imposed 
upon  the  Empress,  the  Emperor  appointed  the  Baron 
of  Me*neval  her  private  secretary.  He  was,  accord- 
ing to  the  Duke  of  Rovigo,  "the  man  in  whose 
honesty  he  had  the  completest  confidence,  his  own 
private  secretary.  He  submitted  to  his  loss,  and 


188  MAlilE   LOUISE. 


begged  M.  de  Meiieval  to  write  to  'him  every  day." 
Cambace*res  was  made  First  Counsellor  of  the  Re- 
gency. Marshal  Moncey  was  given  the  part  of  Gen- 
eral commanding  the  Empress's  Guard,  and  the  Duke 
of  Cadore  that  of  Secretary  of  State  during  the 
absence  of  Daru,  who  accompanied  the  Emperor  to 
the  war. 

The  functions  of  the  Regent  were  carefully  defined 
in  an  order  signed  by  Napoleon  at  Saint  Cloud,  just 
before  his  departure,  April  18,  1813.  This  said : 
"  The  Empress-Regent  will  preside  over  the  Senate, 
the  Council  of  State,  the  Council  of  Ministers,  the 
Privy  Council,  and  the  extraordinary  councils  to  be 
holdeii  whenever  the  Empress-Regent  shall  think 
proper — when  urgent  circumstances  shall  demand 
prompt  measures  that  cannot  await  our  decision. 
She  shall  have  the  right  to  grant  pardon,  to  commute 
punishment,  and  to  grant  reprieves  to  the  execution 
of  sentences  and  condemnations.  .  .  .  She  may  sign 
decrees  containing  nominations  of  minor  importance, 
or  when  urgent  circumstances  shall  require  it.  By 
minor  importance  is  understood,  for  the  War  Depart- 
ment, second  lieutenants,  lieutenants,  captains ;  in  the 
Navy  Department,  officers  up  to  and  including  the 
rank  of  lieutenant;  and  in  the  LaAV  and  Adminis- 
trative Departments,  the  officials  whom  we  do  not 
appoint  by  our  own  choice.  ...  If  the  Empress- 
Regent  does  not  choose  to  preside  over  the  Senate, 
her  place  shall  be  taken  by  our  cousin,  the  Prince 
Archchancellor,  by  virtue  of  the  general  commission 


THE    REGENCY.  189 


granted  by  this  order,  which  commission  also  confers 
upon  him  the  right  of  presiding,  when  the  Empress- 
Regent  does  not  herself  preside,  over  the  Council 
of  State,  the  Council  of  Ministers,  and  the  Privy 
Council." 

It  was  arranged  that  Marie  Louise  should  hold 
every  month,  and  oftener  if  necessary,  diplomatic 
receptions,  without  taking  any  part  in  the  discussion 
of  foreign  affairs,  and  that  she  should  receive  every 
day  a  report  from  the  Duke  of  Lodi,  the  Chancellor 
of  the  Kingdom  of  Italy.  The  Archchancellor 
Cambace'r£s,  First  Counsellor  of  the  Regency,  and 
General  Savary,  Duke  of  Rovigo,  Minister  of  the 
General  Police,  were  to  send  a  daily  report  to  the 
Emperor,  who  at  a  distance,  as  well  as  at  home,  held 
in  his  hand  the  reigns  of  government. 

Wishing  to  make  her  duties  as  Regent  easy  for  a 
young  woman  of  twenty-one,  Napoleon  had  decided 
to  trace  for  her  in  his  letters  the  line  of  conduct  she 
was  to  follow,  and  to  send  to  her  minutes  of  the  let- 
ters she  was  to  write,  or  of  the  speeches  she  would 
have  to  make  ;  she  herself  desired  this.  These  letters 
were  separate  from  the  private  correspondence  ;  they 
had  an  official  character  and  a  special  form. 

The  Emperor,  aware  that  he  might  lose  his  life  in 
the  terrible  conflict  he  was  about  to  begin,  desired, 
by  assuring  the  position  of  the  Empress,  to  give  her 
a  proof  of  his  affection,  and  he  caused  the  Senate  to 
arrange  the  dower  she  should  receive  if  she  should 
become  a  widow.  This  was  fixed  at  an  annual 


190  MARIE    LOUISE. 


income  of  four  million  francs,  part  to  be  paid  by  the 
nation,  and  part  from  the  Crown  estates.  The  estates 
set  aside  for  the  dower  were  the  castle  and  forest  of 
Compidgne  and  the  forest  of  Laigle,  valued  together 
at  eight  hundred  thousand  francs ;  the  forest  of 
Villers-Cotterets,  the  forest  of  Eu  and  of  Aumale, 
with  the  Castle  of  Eu,  the  forest  of  Soignes,  valued 
together  at  one  million  two  hundred  thousand  francs  ; 
and  in  addition  two  million  francs  in  funds  of  the 
Treasury.  The  Empress,  too,  was  to  have  a  life  use 
of  the  Palace  of  the  Elysee  and  of  the  Great  and 
Little  Trianon. 

Prince  Schwarzenberg,  who  had  just  arrived  in 
Paris,  and  in  the  presence  of  Napoleon  seemed  like 
a  subordinate  before  his  chief,  took  very  good  care 
not  to  disturb  the  Empress  by  .any  indication  of  the 
possibility  of  a  rupture  of  the  alliance  between  Aus- 
tria and  France.  To  all  appearance  the  relations  of 
the  two  empires  had  never  been  more  cordial.  So 
great  was  still  the  ascendancy  of  the  hero  of  Wagram 
that  Prince  Schwarzenberg,  who  had  been  sent  to  in- 
sinuate to  him  that  Austria  would  not  draw  the  sword 
unless  in  view  of  peace,  and  of  a  German  peace,  did 
not  dare  to  make  the  statement.  Napoleon  over- 
whelmed him  with  attentions,  and  with  his  lists  in 
his  hand,  tried  to  convince  him  that  in  France,  Italy, 
Spain,  and  Germany,  he  had  eleven  hundred  thousand 
men  under  arms,  and  that  these  men  outnumbered 
the  Prussians  and  Russians.  He  showed  himself 
disposed  to  give  to  Austria  Silesia,  a  million  Poles 


THE    REGENCY.  191 


and  Illyria,  and  lie  pretended  to  believe  that  his 
father-in-law  meant  to  remain  faithful  to  the  treaty 
of  alliance  of  March  14,  1812.  According  to  this 
treaty,  an  Austrian  auxiliary  force  was  placed  under 
the  direct  orders  of  the  Emperor  of  the  French. 
Consequently  Napoleon  told  Prince  Schwarzenberg 
that  he  was  going  to  command  this  Austrian  army 
corps  to  march  to  upper  Silesia  to  fight  against  the 
enemies  of  France.  Prince  Schwarzenberg  bowed 
without  making  any  objection,  and  Napoleon  thought 
himself  justified  in  looking  upon  General  Frimont, 
then  at  the  head  of  the  Austrian  contingent,  as  his 
subordinate.  Hence,  he  wrote  to  the  Emperor 
Francis :  — 

"  Saint  Cloud,  April  13, 1813.  MY  BROTHER  AND 
VERY  DEAR  FATHER-IN-LAW  :  Prince  Schwarzenberg 
has  handed  me  Your  Majesty's  letter.  I  read  it  with 
great  pleasure,  and  I  have  talked  with  him  for  a  long 
time  with  perfect  frankness.  I  can  only  refer  to 
what  he  will  report  to  Your  Majesty.  I  have  been 
much  pleased  with  General  Bubna's  conduct  during 
his  stay  here.  I  should  be  glad  if  Your  Majesty 
would  give  him  some  mark  of  your  satisfaction.  I 
am  on  the  point  of  starting  for  Mayence ;  I  had  not 
meant  to  be  there  before  the  20th,  but  the  news  I 
have  received  of  the  enemy's  movements  on  the  left 
bank  of  the  Elbe  have  decided  me  to  hasten  my 
departure  by  a  few  days.  So  I  intend  to  enter 
Mayence  the  15th  or  16th.  As  soon  as  the  campaign 
is  opened,  I  shall  send  from  Prague  orders  to  General 


192  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


Frimont  to  denounce  the  armistice  and  to  assume 
command  of  the  army  corps  of  Prince  Poniatowski. 
I  shall  keep  Your  Majesty  informed  of  what  goes  on. 
I  beg  you  not  to  doubt  of  my  sincere  attachment ;  it 
is  unalterable." 

The  Emperor  knew  very  well  from  the  Count  of 
Narbonne's  reports  that  he  ought  to  distrust  Austria ; 
bat  he  hid  from  others,  and  perhaps  from  himself,  his 
suspicions ;  and  fancying  that  a  single  victory  would 
suffice  to  preserve  the  alliance  of  his  father-in-law 
and  of  all  the  princes  of  the  Confederation  of  the 
Rhine,  he  tried  to  inspire  his  wife,  as  well  as  his 
generals  and  Ministers,  with  his  own  confidence  in  a 
speedy  and  brilliant  triumph.  He  imagined  himself 
still  in  the  days  of  Austerlitz  and  Jena. 

As  for  Marie  Louise,  she  saw  with  sadness  her 
husband's  departure.  The  thought  of  being  Regent 
of  the  vast  Empire  and  of  the  Kingdom  of  Italy, 
flattered  her  but  little.  She  had  never  been  ambi- 
tious, and  fear  of  the  responsibility  outweighed  the 
delights  of  power.  She  was,  moreover,  determined 
blindly  to  follow  the  orders  of  her  husband,  who 
should  rule  the  Empire  from  afar. 

After  an  affectionate  leave-taking  from  his  wife 
and  his  son,  Napoleon  started  to  assume  command 
of  his  armies,  and  the  Moniteur  announced  his 
departure  from  Saint  Cloud  by  this  simple  sentence  : 
"April  15,  His  Majesty  the  Emperor  left  for  May- 
ence  to-day  at  one  in  the  morning." 

A  few  hours  after  her  husband's  departure,  the 


THE    REGENCY.  193 


Empress-Regent  wrote  to  the  Baron  of  Meneval,  her 
secretary :  — 

"  You  know,  of  course,  that  the  Emperor  is  gone. 
I  like  to  think  that  you,  too,  miss  him.  I  beg  of  you, 
if  M.  Fain  is  still  there,  to  tell  him  that  I  should 
like  to  have  him  give  me  news  of  the  Emperor;  I 
have  had  no  chance  to  say  this  myself.  I  beg  of  you 
also  to  send  me  a  copy  of  the  list  of  guests  which 
the  Emperor  desired  sent  in  the  course  of  the  day. 
I  beg  of  you  to  believe  me  your  attached 

"  LOUISE." 

The  Regent  appeared  in  her  new  dignity,  April  18, 
at  a  reception  of  the  Diplomatic  Body  at  Saint  Cloud. 
Surrounded  by  Princes  in  high  positions,  Ministers, 
high  officers  of  the  Crown,  Grand  Eagles,  a  lady  of 
honor,  officers  and  ladies  in  waiting,  she  wore  her 
new  rank  with  dignity  and  affability.  "  General  sat- 
isfaction was  felt,"  says  the  Duke  of  Rovigo  in  his 
Memoirs,  "at  seeing  the  Empress  Marie  Louise  clad 
with  this  authority ;  she  was  known  to  be  kind  and 
tender;  she  was  much  loved  and  esteemed;  those 
who  had  to  do  with  her  in  private  life  had  nothing 
but  good  to  say  of  her,  and  it  is  true  that  she  had 
won  the  esteem  of  the  nation,  which  had  much 
affection  for  her.  This  was  due  to  the  fact  that 
on  every  occasion  when  she  had  to  appear,  she  was 
always «surrounded  with  the  splendor  which  etiquette 
demanded." 

Marie  Louise  still  believed  in  the  friendship  of  her 
father  and  her  husband ;  and  if  she  had  been  able  to 


194  MARIE    LOUISE. 


foresee  how  imminent  was  war  between  Austria  and 
France,  she  would  have  felt  even  keener  regret  at 
Napoleon's  departure.  As  for  him,  he  knew  full 
well  that  the  part  he  was  about  to  play  was  full  of 
peril.  But  for  men  of  his  sort,  danger  is  a  pleasure. 
With  their  pride  and  audacity  they  find  joy  in  tempt- 
ing, braving,  and  defying  fortune.  The  need  of 
strong  emotions  is  the  keynote  of  their  character. 
They  like  neither  repose  nor  safety.  To  rulers  of 
that  kind  a  prosperous  but  uneventful  reign  seems 
like  a  degradation,  and  desiring  for  their  subjects  as 
well  as  for  themselves  excitement  and  adventures, 
they  think  themselves  sent  into  the  world  to  provide 
material  for  history.  Such  was  Napoleon,  a  high 
player  and  a  great  actor,  who  lived  for  posterity. 


XIII. 

LUTZEN  AND  BAUTZEN. 

ri  THE  day  after  Napoleon's  departure,  Prince 
_JL  Schwarzenberg  found  the  Empress-Regent  sad 
and  anxious.  He  was  more  open  with  her  than  he 
had  bean  with  her  redoubtable  husband,  and  he  let  her 
see  the  possibility  of  a  break  between  her  father  and 
her  husband^  Marie  Louise's  eyes  filled  with  tears. 
Prince  Schwarzenberg  spoke  in  a  still  more  alarm- 
ing way  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano.  He  considered 
the  possibility  of  Napoleon's  not  accepting  Austria's 
mediation,  and  went  so  far  as  to  say :  "  Politics  made 
the  marriage ;  politics  may  unmake  it." 

For  his  part,  the  Count  of  Narbonne,  the  French 
Ambassador  at  Vienna,  wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano, 
May  2,  1813 :  "  People  who  have  not  been  outside  of 
this  city  for  twenty  years,  say  that  never  has  society 
been  so  scandalously  frank  in  its  opposition  to  Avhat 
appears  to  be  the  professions  of  the  Emperor  and 
his  Minister.  Is  it  the  fault  of  the  government,  or 
its  intention?  Or,  being  unable  to  prevent  it,  is  it 
this  spirit  which  causes  so  much  uncertainty  and 
condemns  the  government  to  a  course,  which,  in 

195 


196  MARIE    LOUISE. 


any  other  circumstances  would  prove  the  blackest 
treachery !  That  is  a  question  which  one  cannot 
help  asking  one's  self." 

Marie  Louise,  who  read  the  despatches,  was  much 
disturbed  by  the  state  of  affairs.  She  had  an  inter- 
view with  the  First  Secretary  of  the  Austrian  Embassy, 
M.  de  Floret,  who  after  Prince  Schwarzenberg's  de- 
parture, was  in  charge  of  the  Embassy.  "I  am 
assured,"  she  said  to  him,  "that  Austria  means  to 
side  against  France." 

M.  de  Floret  seemed  sincere  when  he  besought  the 
young  sovereign  to  cast  out  such  fears  from  her  mind. 
"  But  I  hear  it  said  every  day,"  the  Empress  went  on. 
"  The  Emperor  is  very  uneasy  about  it,  not  merely 
on  my  account,  but  also  because  of  his  friendship  for 
my  father  since  he  saw  him  at  Dresden.  Judge  for 
yourself  how  this  condition  of  things  distresses  me. 
I  think  that  at  Vienna  my  husband's  real  strength 
is  not  understood.  Soon  his  armies  will  be  very 
much  larger  even  than  they  now  are.  I  know  this, 
now  that  I  see  the  lists.  The  French  have  never 
shown  such  ardor.  If  my  father  should  declare 
war  against  France,  the  most  terrible  consequences 
for  himself  and  for  Austria  might  follow.  Write  to 
Vienna.  My  father  will  believe  you  more  than  he 
will  believe  me." 

M.  de  Floret  did  his  best  to  reassure  the  Empress. 
He  told  her  that  the  Emperor  Francis's  character  and 
his  affections  for  a  beloved  daughter  were  a  guaranty 
for  the  future ;  that  he  had  had  enough  of  war,  and 


LUTZEN    AND    BAUTZEN.  197 

now  desired  nothing  but  peace,  which  was  necessary 
for  both  Austria  and  France ;  and  that  he  wanted 
quietly  to  devote  the  rest  of  his  life  to  his  people  and 
his  family.  This  comforted  Marie  Louise,  who  began 
to  talk  about  Napoleon,  of  his  kindness  as  a  family 
man,  of  his  domestic  excellence  which  made  him  a 
model  husband,  and  she  persuaded  M.  de  Floret  to 
promise  to  write  this  to  Vienna.  She  herself  sent  her 
father  a  letter,  in  which,  after  expressing  her  fears, 
she  invoked  the  ties  of  blood.  "  The  Emperor  said 
to  me,"  she  wrote,  "the  Sovereign  to  whom  I  am 
most  strongly  bound  is  your  father.  I  am  sure  that 
if  he  should  let  himself  be  led  by  his  wife  he  would 
regret  the  loss  of  my  friendship."  At  this  time 
Marie  Louise  had  a  sincere  affection  for  her  husband, 
and  the  idea  that  she  might  one  day  desert  him  never 
occurred  to  her.  She  discharged  her  duties  as  Regent 
like  a  good  Frenchwoman,  a  good  wife,  and  a  good 
mother. 

Meanwhile,  Napoleon  delighted  to  be  once  more  at 
the  head  of  his  troops,  plunged  into  his  duties  as 
commaiider-in-chief.  Never  had  he  more  ardently 
loved  war.  The  terrible  lessons  of  the  Russian  cam- 
paign had  been  completely  thrown  away  upon  him. 
He  was  confident  that  his  revenge  would  be  most 
brilliant,  and  fancied  that  though  he  might  have  had 
to  yield  to  the  elements,  men  would  never  conquer 
him.  The  victory  he  won  at  Liitzen,  May  2,  1813, 
made  him  imagine  that  he  would  always  be  the  mas- 
ter of  Europe.  His  soldiers,  who  were  scarcely  more 


198  MARIE    LOUISE. 


than  boys,  did  wonders.  Marshal  Ney  liad  said  to 
him:  "Sire,  give  me  those  young  and  brave  con- 
scripts, I  will  lead  them  wherever  you  please.  Our 
old  fellows  know  as  much  as  we  do ;  they  judge  the 
difficulties  and  the  field,  but  these  brave  boys  are 
afraid  of  nothing;  they  don't  look  to  the  right  or 
the  left,  but  always  straight  ahead;  it's  glory  that 
they  want."  In  the  battle  the  French  conscripts  and 
the  Prussian  students  rivalled  one  another  in  bravery 
and  daring.  Almost  every  general  was  wounded. 
While  the  King  of  Prussia  and  the  Emperor  of 
Russia  looked  down  upon  the  carnage  from  the  top  of 
a  hill,  Napoleon  was  in  the  middle  of  the  fire,  spur- 
ring on  his  recruits  by  words  and  gestures.  "  To-day 
belongs  to  France,"  he  shouted.  "Forward!  The 
country  is  watching  you.  Learn  how  to  die  for  it." 
And  after  the  battle  he  said:  "In  the  twenty  years 
that  I  have  commanded  French  armies  I  have  never 
seen  more  bravery  and  devotion.  My  young  soldiers' 
honor  and  courage  streamed  from  every  pore."  Yet 
this  victory,  which  was  hotly  disputed,  was  incom- 
plete. After  all  his  obstinate  efforts  and  a  loss  of 
twelve  thousand  men,  Napoleon  had  captured  only 
two  thousand  prisoners,  and  having  no  cavalry,  he 
could  not  pursue  the  enemy. 

From  Pegau  he  wrote,  May  4,  1813,  the  following 
letter : — 

"  MY  BROTHER  AND  VERY  DEAR  FATHER-IN-LAW  : 
Knowing  the  interest  which  Your  Majesty  takes  in 
my  success,  I  hasten  to  inform  you  of  the  victory 


LUTZEN    AND    BAUTZEN.  199 

which  it  has  pleased  Providence  to  grant  to  my  forces 
in  the  field  of  Liitzen.  Although  I  was  anxious  to  di- 
rect myself  all  the  movements  of  my  army,  and  was  thus 
exposed  at  times  to  the  musketry  fire,  I  was  untouched, 
and,  Heaven  be  praised,  am  in  the  enjoyment  of  the 
best  of  health.  I  have  heard  from  the  Empress,  with 
whom  I  continue  to  be  very  well  pleased.  She  is 
now  my  Prime  Minister,  and  discharges  her  duties 
to  my  great  satisfaction.  I  must  tell  Your  Majesty 
this,  for  I  know  how  it  will  gratify  your  paternal 
heart.  Your  Majesty  must  believe  in  the  esteem  and 
thorough  respect  I  feel  towards  him,  and  especially 
in  my  sincere  interest  in  his  happiness." 

The  same  day  Napoleon  wrote  to  the  Archchan- 
cellor  Cambace*res :  — 

"  MY  COUSIN  :  You  will  see  by  the  despatches  sent 
to  the  Empress  what  is  the  present  state  of  affairs. 
It  could  not  be  better.  The  bravery,  zeal,  and  devo- 
tion the  young  soldiers  show  is  unexcelled.  They 
are  full  of  enthusiasm." 

May  6  the  Emperor  sent  to  the  Minister  of  Public 
Worship  the  text  of  a  circular  which  the  Empress- 
Regent  was  to  forward  to  the  bishops  of  the  Empire. 
It  ran  thus :  — 

"  BISHOP  :  The  victory  won  at  Liitzen  by  His 
Majesty  the  Emperor  and  King,  our  very  dear  hus- 
band and  Sovereign,  can  only  be  regarded  as  a  special 
act  of  divine  Providence.  We  desire  that  on  receipt 
of  these  presents  you  should  make  arrangements  for 
the  singing  of  a  Te  Deum,  and  for  returning  thanks 


200  MAEIE    LOUISE. 

to  the  God  of  battles ;  and  that  you  should  add  such 
prayers  as  you  may  think  proper  to  secure  the  divine 
protection  for  our  armies,  and  especially  for  the  preser- 
vation of  the  sacred  person  of  His  Majesty  the  Em- 
peror and  King,  our  very  dear  husband  and  Sovereign. 
May  God  guard  him  from  every  peril !  His  safety 
is  necessary  for  the  happiness  of  Europe,  and  for 
religion,  which  he  has  aided  and  is  called  upon  to 
strengthen.  He  is  its  sincerest  and  truest  protector. 
This  letter  having  no  other  aim,  we  pray  God  to  have 
you  in  his  holy  keeping.  Given  at  our  Palace  of 
Saint  Cloud." 

No  pains  were  spared  to  kindle  the  enthusiasm  of  the 
Parisians.  Liitzen  was  celebrated  with  more  pomp 
than  Austerlitz.  Sunday,  May  23, 1813,  the  Empress- 
Regent  went  in  state  to  Notre  Dame,  to  be  present  at 
the  Te  Deum  sung  in  honor  of  the  new  victory.  The 
church  was  sumptuously  decorated  with  lights,  hang- 
ings, and  carpets.  In.  the  choir,  to  the  right  of  the 
altar,  stood  the  Empress's  throne.  At  one  o'clock 
she  started  for  the  Tuileries  in  a  state  coach,  and 
followed  by  a  brilliant  company,  drove  to  the  cathe- 
dral. The  Archbishop  of  Paris  at  that  time  was  the 
great  orator  of  the  Constituent  Assembly,  Mirabeau's 
rival,  the  former  Abbe  Maury,  who  had  been  made 
a  cardinal.  When  Marie  Louise  reached  the  thresh- 
old of  the  cathedral  he  addressed  her  as  follows : 
"  Madame  :  The  presence  of  Your  Imperial  and  Royal 
Majesty  in  this  sanctuary  makes  known  to  your  peo- 
ple the  new  and  conspicuous  blessings  with  which  the 


LUTZEN    AND    BAUTZEN.  201 

Most  High  has  crowned  the  ever  victorious  arms  of 
your  august  spouse.  If  all  the  French  people  are  over- 
whelmed with  joy  at  having  to-day  in  their  love  to 
thank  God  for  so  much  glory,  what  must  be  the  happi- 
ness of  a  heart  called  upon  to  share  it  upon  the  throne  ? 
Religion  is  about  to  enrich  itself,  in  its  prayers,  with 
all  the  credit  which  is  assured  by  your  virtues  at  the 
moment  when  your  piety  has  selected  it  for  the  expres- 
sion of  your  gratitude  to  the  King  of  kings." 

After  this  ingenious  bit  of  flattery,  the  eloquent 
cardinal  went  on,  alluding  to  the  coronation  of  the 
Empress  and  of  the  King  of  Rome,  which,  it  was 
supposed,  would  take  place  when  the  war  was  over, 
as  an  epilogue  to  the  victories.  "The  same  temple," 
he  said,  "  in  which  the  whole  Empire  meets  to  raise 
to  Heaven  the  pious  transports  of  its  gratitude,  will 
soon  be  opened,  Madame,  to  celebrate  in  your  honor 
another  historic  rite  as  dear  to  our  Sovereign  as  to 
his  subjects.  Then  we  shall  see  again,  amid  universal 
applause,  the  august  heroine  of  this  national  festivity, 
deservedly  placed  before  our  altars,  by  the  side  of  the 
restorer  and  the  heir  of  the  throne  of  Charlemagne. 
Religion,  happy  to  consecrate  such  a  blessed  day, 
will  congratulate  itself  on  then  proclaiming  all  the 
resplendent  glory  of  your  happiness  and  the  public 
joy.  But,  Madame,  we  cannot  too  soon  tell  Your 
Majesty,  in  the  name  of  this  religion,  as  holy  as  it  is 
necessary,  that  it  will  always  regard  as  the  greatest 
of  your  benefactions  the  publicity  of  religious  prin- 
ciples and  the  protection  of  your  example." 


202  MAE  IE    LOUISE. 


When  he  had  finished  his  speech,  the  Archbishop 
walked  in  front  of  the  Empress-Regent,  as  she  was  led 
to  the  choir  in  a  procession,  beneath  a  canopy  sup- 
ported by  canons.  The  procession  advanced  in  the 
following  order :  the  Ushers,  the  Heralds  at  Arms, 
Pages,  Aides,  and  Masters  of  Ceremonies,  the  Officers 
in  Waiting,  the  Grand  Eagles,  the  High  Officers  of 
the  Empire,  the  Grand  Master  of  Ceremonies,  the 
High  Chamberlain,  the  Princes  holding  high  posi- 
tions, the  Regent  beneath  the  canopy,  the  Lady  of 
Honor,  the  Knight  of  Honor,  the  First  Equerry,  the 
First  Almoners,  the  Marshal,  the  Duke  of  Conegliano. 
The  Empress  on  reaching  the  choir  knelt  on  a 
cushion  before  the  altar,  and  then  took  her  seat  on 
the  throne;  and  after  the  Te  Deum  was  sung,  she 
went  back  to  the  Tuileries  as  she  had  come. 

The  next  day  the  Moniteur  took  up  its  lyric 
trumpet,  and  thus  described  the  ceremony:  "It  is 
hard  to  paint  the  emotion  inspired  by  this  solemn 
rite.  It  was  a  spectacle  at  once  magnificent  and 
touching :  the  estates  of  the  Realm,  guardians  of  the 
Empire ;  the  worthy  magistrates,  charged  with  the 
maintenance  of  order  and  justice ;  the  warriors,  the 
honor  of  their  country  ;  the  young  students,  the  hope 
of  France  ;  the  flower  of  the  vast  population  of  Paris, 
gazed  with  tenderness  at  the  gentle  majesty  of  virtue 
mounting  on  the  most  glorious  throne  in  the  world, 
and  they  with  rapture  united  their  prayers  with  hers, 
to  thank  the  God  of  battles  for  the  success  with 
which  he  has  crowned  the  noble  conceptions  and 


LUTZEN    AND    BAUTZEN.  203 

swift  efforts  of  our  immortal  Emperor.  Gratitude 
for  his  feats,  regrets  for  his  absence,  prayers  for  his 
safety,  enthusiasm  for  what  had  been  done  in  six 
months  in  the  way  of  repairing  losses,  the  many  con- 
spiracies brought  to  naught  in  one  day,  the  vision- 
ary schemes  destroyed  by  one  victory,  the  miracles 
wrought  by  his  genius,  evoked  in  every  heart  a 
multitude  of  intense,  noble,  and  tender  impressions, 
which  sought  expression  in  every  way.  In  the  sanc- 
tuary, outside  of  it,  and  all  along  the  path  followed 
by  the  Empress-Regent,  with  her  noble  suite,  there 
was  assembled  a  vast  throng,  and  their  applause 
attested  the  love  and  veneration  with  which  she  has 
inspired  the  whole  French  people." 

In  order  to  make  a  favorable  impression  on  the 
nation,  in  the  number  of  the  Moniteur  containing 
the  description  of  the  Te  Deum,  it  was  announced 
that  the  Emperor  had  just  proposed  a  congress  at 
Prague  to  discuss  a  general  peace,  and  it  was  added : 
"  His  Majesty  offers  to  agree  to  an  armistice  between 
the  different  armies,  in  order  to  put  a  stop  to  the 
shedding  of  blood.  These  principles  are  in  harmony 
with  the  views  of  Austria." 

Marie  Louise  was  happy  because  eveiything  seemed 
to  betoken  a  speedy  and  glorious  peace.  After  her 
return  from  Notre  Dame,  she  wrote  to  her  father: 
"  I  come  back  deeply  moved  by  seeing  the  love  with 
which  the  Emperor  inspires  the  people.  Never  have 
the  French  more  warmly  cheered  his  name.  He  is 
victor  and  peacemaker." 


204  MARIE    LOUISE. 


At  Vienna  the  impression  made  by  the  battle  of 
Liitzen  was  immense.  The  Count  of  Narbonne 
wrote,  May  10,  1813,  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano: 
"  However  accustomed  one  may  be  to  the  wonders 
accomplished  by  His  Majesty,  it  is  impossible  not  to 
be  struck  by  a  new  admiration  or  new  terror  on  see- 
ing how  his  genius  dispenses  with  everything,  fills 
every  void,  takes  the  place  of  cavalry,  renders  the 
army  experienced,  and  finds  a  way  to  turn  everything 
into  an  instrument  of  victory.  I  hastened  to  inform 
Prince  Schwarzenberg,  who  seemed  delighted  and  not 
at  all  surprised." 

Napoleon  made  a  victorious  entry  into  Dresden 
where  he  was  rejoined  by  the  King  of  Saxony,  once 
more  his  faithful  ally.  The  Emperor  of  Austria  sent 
thither  General  Bubna  with  this  letter :  — 

"  May  11,  1813.  MY  BROTHER  AND  VERY  DEAR 
SON-IN-LAW  :  I  despatch  Count  Bubna  to  Your  Im- 
perial Majesty  at  this  moment  of  the  greatest  impor- 
tance for  our  Empires.  This  is  the  moment  when  I 
demand  your  frankest  confidence.  If  Your  Majesty 
aids  my  efforts  by  a  moderation  which  will  establish 
his  reign  among  the  most  glorious,  which  will  assure 
the  happiest  future  to  Your  Imperial  Majesty,  by 
establishing  on  the  firmest  basis  the  dynasty  which 
you  have  founded,  the  existence  of  which  is  closely 
bound  up  with  my  own,  I  shall  congratulate  myself 
on  having  contributed  to  this  good  end." 

In  another  letter  written  the  next  day,  Emperor 
Francis  thanked  his  son-in-law  for  sending  him  word 
of  the  victory  of  Liitzen :  — 


LUTZEN  AND  BAUTZEN.  205 

"  MY  BKOTHER  AND  VERY  DEAR  SON-IN-LAW  : 
I  warmly  thank  Your  Imperial  Majesty  for  the  atten- 
tion paid  me  in  sending  me  news  of  your  health  after 
the  bloody  day  of  Liitzen.  You  only  do  justice  to 
my  eager  interest  in  yourself,  by  thinking  me  anxious 
about  the  dangers  to  which  you  expose  yourself  only 
too  much.  What  you  say  about  the  Empress  gives 
me  great  pleasure.  When  I  gave  you  my  daughter, 
I  was  sure  that  I  gave  you  an  excellent  wife  who 
was  endowed  with  all  the  qualities  necessary  for 
domestic  happiness.  The  development  of  these 
which  renders  her  worthy  to  govern  the  Empire  is 
doubtless  due  to  the  wise  lessons  and  the  example  of 
Your  Imperial  Majesty.  It  is  my  heartiest  wish  that 
my  daughter  may  always  contribute  to  your  happi- 
ness, on  which,  my  brother,  my  own  in  a  great  meas- 
ure depends." 

Napoleon  thus  answered  this  affectionate  letter :  — 
"Dresden,  May  17,  1813.  MY  BROTHER  AND 
VERY  DEAR  FATHER-IN-LAW  :  What  Your  Majesty 
tells  me  in  your  letter  about  the  interest  you  feel, 
touches  me  deeply.  I  deserve  it  by  the  genuineness 
of  my  feeling  for  you.  If  Your  Majesty  is  concerned 
about  my  happiness,  may  you  guard  my  honor.  I 
have  decided  to  die,  if  need  be,  at  the  head  of  the 
brave  French  army,  rather  than  to  become  the  laugh- 
ing stock  of  the  English  and  to  allow  my  enemies  to 
triumph.  May  Your  Majesty  think  of  the  future! 
Do  not  destroy  the  fruit  of  these  years  of  friendship, 
and  do  not  renew  the  old  plots  which  will  drive 


206  MARlfi   LOUISE. 


Europe  into  unending  convulsions  and  wars.  Do 
not  for  petty  considerations  sacrifice  the  happiness  of 
our  generation,  of  your  life,  and  your  subjects'  real 
interests,  —  why  should  I  not  say  those  of  a  part  of 
your  family  which  is  sincerely  attached  to  you !  May 
Your  Majesty  never  doubt  my  attachment !  " 

The  same  day  that  Napoleon  sent  this  letter  to  the 
Emperor  of  Austria,  he  received  warmly  General 
Bubna  and  appeared  to  enter  sincerely  into  the  views 
of  the  Viennese  cabinet.  The  same  day  he  wrote 
again  to  Emperor  Francis  :  — 

"  MY  BROTHER  AND  VERY  DEAR  FATHER-IN-LAW  : 
I  have  had  an  interview  of  several  hours  with  Count 
Bubna.  I  told  him  frankly  and  sincerely  what  I 
thought.  I  desire  peace  more  than  any  one.  I  con- 
sent to  open  negotiations  for  a  general  peace  and  to 
the  assembling  of  a  congress  in  some  city  placed 
between  the  different  belligerent  courts.  As  soon  as 
I  shall  have  heard  that  England,  Russia,  Prussia,  and 
the  allies  have  accepted  this  proposition,  I  shall  hasten 
to  send  a  Minister  Plenipotentiary  to  this  congress, 
and  I  shall  urge  my  allies  to  do  the  same.  I  shall 
make  no  objection  to  the  admission  to  the  congress 
of  the  Spanish  insurgents  to  present  their  claims.  If 
Russia,  Prussia,  and  the  other  belligerent  powers 
wish  to  treat  without  England,  I  also  consent  to  that. 
I  shall  be  ready  to  send  my  Minister  Plenipotentiary 
as  soon  as  I  shall  have  heard  that  this  proposition  is 
accepted,  and  I  shall  urge  my  allies  to  do  the  same 
thing  as  soon  as  I  shall  know  the  date  of  meeting. 


LUTZEN    AND    BAUTZEN.  207 

If,  after  the  opening  of  the  congress,  the  belligerent 
powers  desire  to  conclude  an  armistice  as  was  the 
case  in  Paris  with  Prince  Schwarzenberg,  I  am  ready 
to  agree  to  it.  Your  Majesty  will  see  from  what  I 
say,  which  is  what  I  said  six  months  ago,  that  I  desire 
to  avoid  the  effusion  of  human  blood  and  to  put  an 
end  to  the  troubles  which  afflict  so  many  nations." 

The  Emperor  Francis  trusted  in  his  son-in-law's 
sincerity,  and  at  first  thought  that  the  congress 
would  be  of  importance.  Metternich,  who  really 
desired  peace,  was  confident  and  happy.  The  Count 
of  Narbonne  wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bassano,  May  21, 
1813  :  "  Since  my  arrival  here  I  have  not  seen  M.  de 
Metternich  so  satisfied  as  he  appears  at  this  moment. 
'  Well,'  he  said  to  me,  ;  I  hope  that  the  time  is  come 
when  the  Emperor  Napoleon  will  be  convinced  that 
we  are  neither  fools  nor  traitors.  Confess  that  I  was 
right  in  guessing  that  he  would  at  last  do  us  justice, 
and  see  that  the  simplicity  of  the  plans  required 
no  explanation  or  development.  His  letter  to  his 
father-in-law,  which  I  have  not  yet  read,  though  I 
have  heard  most  of  its  contents,  is  exactly  what  I 
should  have  desired,  and  at  any  rate,  what  we  hear 
exceeds  all  my  hopes.  Though  I  have  not  been  to 
Laxenberg,  but  am  going  to-morrow  with  Bubna,  I 
can  tell  you  now  that  His  Majesty  is  delighted,  and 
will  send  him  off  with  instructions  which  ought  to 
please  Napoleon.'  I  repeat  it.  I  have  never  seen 
him  more  thoroughly  pleased.  .  .  .  Day  before  yes- 
terday at  Laxenberg,  a  man  whom  I  know  was  speak- 


208  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


ing  of  the  embarrassment  Napoleon  must  be  in,  in 
spite  of  his  victories,  and  was  dwelling  with  great 
satisfaction  on  his  dangerous  situation.  Emperor 
Francis  answered  with  a  proverbial  phrase  of  an 
Austrian  dialect,  '  I  am  not  troubled  about  him ;  he 
will  be  playing  one  of  his  old  tricks.'  Do  you  care 
to  know  the  opinion  of  Russian  and  Prussian  society? 
The  same  persons  who  a  fortnight  ago  were  offering 
to  bet  a  hundred  to  fifteen  on  a  war  against  us,  yes- 
terday refused  even  the  odds  reversed.  An  intimate 
friend  of  Prince  Schwarzenberg  tells  me  that  he  left 
with  the  greatest  possible  satisfaction,  and.  accounted 
for  this  change  on  the  ground  of  the  pleasure  he 
must  feel  at  holding  the  brilliant  position  of  com- 
mander of  the  Austrian  forces  with  the  certainty 
that  he  would  not  have  to  use  them." 

Just  when  Napoleon  was  talking  about  an  armis- 
tice and  peace-making,  he  had  resumed  hostilities. 
May  20  and  21  he  fought  the  bloody  battle  of  Baut- 
zen, in  which  he  routed  the  Russians  and  the  Prus- 
sians. The  enemy,  who  had  lost  eighteen  thousand 
men,  but  had  inflicted  a  loss  of  twelve  thousand  on 
the  French,  retreated  in  good  order,  burning  their 
material,  laying  the  road  waste,  and  making  a  stand 
at  every  stream  and  gorge.  "  What ! "  exclaimed 
the  Emperor,  "after  such  butchery,  no  result!  no 
prisoners  !  Those  fellows  won't  leave  me  a  pin !  " 

The  Count  of  Montesquiou  was  charged  to  carry 
the  Empress  the  news  of  the  victory  of  Bautzen. 
She  wrote  to  her  father:  "I  think  that  I  see  that 


LUTZEN    AND    BAUTZEN.  209 

this  battle  was  very  important.  I  can't  tell  you  how 
happy  this  good  news  makes  me.  I  was  never  better 
in  my  life." 

At  Paris,  as  at  Vienna,  every  one  believed  in  peace. 
The  Emperor,  it  was  said  on  all  sides,  was  to  show 
himself  moderate,  wise,  disposed  to  peace.  The 
death  of  Duroc,  Grand  Marshal  of  the  Palace,  who 
was  killed  the  day  after  the  battle  of  Bautzen,  had 
doubtless  filled  him  with  sad  and  useful  thoughts. 
This  death  was  very  sudden :  a  few  moments  before 
he  was  struck,  two  or  three  steps  from  his  master, 
Duroc  sadly  said  to  Caulaincourt,  "  My  friend,  do 
you  notice  the  Emperor  ?  He  has  just  won  victories 
after  defeats,  and  now  would  be  the  time  to  take 
advantage  of  the  lessons  of  misfortune.  But,  you 
see,  he  is  not  changed.  He  is  never  satiated  with 
fighting.  The  end  of  all  this  cannot  fail  to  be  bad." 
In  fact,  he  was  right.  Napoleon  ran  up  to  his  dying 
friend.  Duroc  pressed  his  hand,  raised  it  to  his  lips, 
and  said  with  a  faint  voice,  "  My  whole  life  has  been 
devoted  to  your  service,  and  all  I  regret  is  that  I  can 
no  longer  be  of  use  to  you."  "  Duroc,"  answered  the 
Emperor,  "  there  is  another  life ;  there  you  will  await 
me,  and  we  shall  meet  some  day."  "  Yes,  Sire,  but 
not  for  thirty  years,  when  you  shall  have  triumphed 
over  your  enemies  and  have  fulfilled  our  country's 
hopes.  I  have  lived  as  an  honest  man ;  I  have  noth- 
ing to  reproach  myself  with.  I  leave  a  daughter; 
Your  Majesty  will  be  a  father  to  her." 

Thiers  describes  Napoleon  leaving  the  hut  where 


210  MARIE    LOUISE. 


he  had  just  bidden  farewell  to  his  unhappy  fellow- 
soldier,  and  seating  himself  on  some  fascines  near 
the  outposts :  "  There  he  sat,  buried  in  thought,  his 
hands  on  his  knees,  his  eyes  wet  with  tears,  scarcely 
hearing  the  shots  of  the  skirmishers,  and  not  noticing 
the  caresses  of  a  dog  belonging  to  a  regiment  of  the 
Guards,  which  often  galloped  by  the  side  of  his  horse, 
and  now  stood  before  him,  licking  his  hands.  An 
equerry  came  to  rouse  him  from  this  revery;  he 
arose  suddenly,  hiding  his  tears,  in  order  not  to  be 
seen  thus  moved.  Such  is  human  nature,  change- 
able, mysterious  in  its  various  aspects,  to  be  judged 
fairly  by  God  alone  !  This  man  thus  moved  by  the 
fate  of  one  wounded  man,  had  caused  the  mutilation 
of  more  than  eighty  thousand  men  within  a  month, 
of  more  than  two  millions  in  eighteen  years,  and  was 
yet  to  cause  several  hundred  thousand  more  to  be 
torn  by  bullets." 

Alas !  no  lesson  was  of  use  to  the  Emperor,  not 
even  the  Russian  campaign.  It  was  said  that  noth- 
ing in  the  world  could  inspire  him  with  the  ideas  of 
moderation  and  wisdom,  which  were  yet  so  necessary. 
Austria  sincerely  desired  that  he  should  keep  the 
Kingdom  of  Westphalia  for  his  brother  Jerome ;  the 
Kingdom  of  Naples  for  his  brother-in-law  Murat ;  the 
Kingdom  of  Italy  and  the  French  Empire,  that  vast 
Empire,  not  only  with  the  frontier  of  the  Rhine, 
but  also  Belgium,  Holland,  Piedmont,  Tuscany,  the 
Roman  States,  as  French  departments  for  himself.  It 
asked  of  him  only  to  abandon  three  cities :  Hamburg, 


LUTZEN    AND    BAUTZEN.  211 

Bremen,  and  Liibeck;  and  to  resign  one  title,  that  of 
Protector  of  the  Confederation  of  the  Rhine.  It  was 
through  his  unwillingness  to  make  this  slight  con- 
cession that  Napoleon  ruined  France  and  himself. 

June  4,  1813,  the  Emperor  signed  the  armistice, 
not  to  make  peace,  but  to  prepare  a  second  campaign. 
He  needed  still  two  months  to  complete  his  arma- 
ments and  to  make  war  even  with  Austria.  The 
fault  of  this  fatal  armistice,  which  saved  the  then 
desperate  forces  of  the  coalitions,  and  which  Napo- 
leon should  not  have  accepted  unless  he  sincerely 
desired  peace,  lay  in  his  unwillingness  to  consent  to 
the  conditions  imposed  by  the  Cabinet  of  Vienna. 
But  the  news  was  received  with  joy  by  all  Europe, 
except  Prussia:  Marie  Louise  fancied  that  she  had 
come  to  the  end  of  her  trials,  and  believed  that 
France  and  Austria  would  remain  united  forever. 
As  soon  as  she  heard  of  the  armistice  she  wrote  to 
her  father :  "  I  can  truly  say  that  no  piece  of  news 
has  ever  given  me  greater  pleasure.  It  dispels  my 
anxieties  and  my  fears.  I  see  in  it  a  proof  of  your 
kindness ;  this  touches  me,  and  I  cannot  be  suf- 
ficiently grateful.  I  am  sure  that  the  Emperor  will 
gladly  accept  this  token  of  your  friendship.  The 
days  I  spent  with  you  at  Prague  and  at  Dresden 
abound  with  touching  memories.  It  was  in  this 
month,  last  year,  that  I  had  the  happiness  to  see  you 
and  to  assure  you  by  word  of  mouth  of  my  filial  affec- 
tion. I  kiss  your  hand,  dear  father,  and  thank  you 
for  sending  me  a  courier  every  fortnight."  July  7, 


212  MARIE    LOUISE. 


the  Regent  wrote  again  to  her  father :  "  I  can  give 
you  good  news  of  my  husband.  All  my  prayers  are 
for  a  speedy  peace.  The  armistice  has  already  much 
improved  my  health.  You  know  how  anxiety  affects 
me." 

Napoleon,  when  he  sent  his  army  into  their  quar- 
ters, had  decreed  that  a  monument  should  be  built 
on  the  summit  of  the  Alps,  with  this  inscription : 
"  Napoleon  to  the  French  people,  in  memory  of  their 
generous  efforts  against  the  coalition  of  1813." 

These  heroic  efforts,  this  magnanimous  struggle, 
these  wonders  of  devotion  and  courage  were  to  have 
for  result  the  horrors  of  the  invasion.  The  hopes 
that  were  felt  were  but  a  snare.  The  Congress  of 
Prague  was  to  be  but  an  image ;  a  ghost  of  a  con- 
gress, and  oceans  of  blood  were,  alas  !  yet  to  flow. 


XIV. 

THE  ARMISTICE. 

"\TAPOLEON  returned  to  Dresden  June  10, 1813. 
-L  i  Strange  rumors  had  been  circulating  among 
the  inhabitants  of  this  city  since  Duroc's  remains 
had  passed  through.  Many  thought  that  the  Grand 
Marshal's  coffin  was  really  the  Emperor's,  who  had 
been  killed  in  the  last  battle,  and  whose  body,  they 
said,  was  in  a  room  of  the  castle  where  one  could 
see  candles  burning  all  night.  When  the  Imperial 
carriage  arrived,  they  maintained  that  it  was  not 
Napoleon  whom  they  saw,  but  a  stuffed  figure. 
But  when  the  next  day  the  Emperor  appeared  on 
horseback  in  a  field  outside  the  city  gates,  they  had 
to  yield  to  the  evidence  and  to  acknowledge  that 
the  winner  of  so  many  battles  was  still  alive.  He 
established  himself  in  the  Marcolini  Palace,  a  charm- 
ing summer  house  in  the  Friedrichstadt  suburb.  A 
large,  beautiful  garden,  the  green  fields  of  the  Oster- 
wiese,  on  the  banks  of  the  Elbe,  and  the  most  agreea- 
ble exposure  rendered  this  spot  in  the  month  of  June 
far  more  attractive  than  the  winter  palace  where 
lived  the  King  of  Saxony.  A  large  number  of  troops 

213 


214  MA KIH    LOU18E. 


could  be  drilled  011  the  river's  edge,  in  Napoleon's 
sight.  He  arranged  his  life  with  military  precision, 
and  decided  that  in  the  morning  he  would  hold  a 
levee  as  he  had  done  at  the  Tuileries ;  the  middle  of 
the  day  he  would  devote  to  drills  and  reviews;  the 
evening  to  dinners,  receptions,  and  theatrical  per- 
formances. 

The  actors  of  the  Comedie  Franchise,  among  whom 
were  Talma,  Fleury,  Saint  Prix,  Mademoiselle  Geor- 
ges, Mademoiselle  Mars,  and  Mademoiselle  Contat, 
were  summoned  from  Paris,  and  reached  Dresden 
June  19,  1813.  Napoleon  had  written  to  Camba- 
ce'res :  "  It  is  well  people  should  think  that  we  are 
amusing  ourselves  here."  The  first  performance  took 
place  in  the  Orangery  of  the  Marcolini  Palace,  which 
had  been  turned  into  a  little  theatre,  holding  hardly 
more  than  two  hundred  persons.  There  was  played 
in  the  first  evening,  the  G-ageure  imprevue  and  the 
Suite  d'un  bal  masque.  Comedies  alone  were  given 
in  this  small  room  ;  as  for  the  tragedies,  they  were 
played  in  the  great  theatre  of  the  city.  It  was  M.  de 
Bausset  who  acted  as  manager,  in  company  with  M. 
de  Turenne.  "A  remarkable  change,"  he  tells  us, 
"  took  place  at  this  time  in  Napoleon's  tastes,  he  pre- 
viously having  been  fond  of  tragedy.  Generally 
speaking,  all  men  feel  this  effect  of  advancing  years. 
In  youth,  in  the  age  of  passion,  the  masterpieces  of 
tragedy  cariy  us  into  an  unknown  conventional 
world.  Then  everything,  to  the  language  and  the 
dresses,  addresses  our  senses  and  our  soul  in  a  heroic 


THE    ARMISTICE.  215 


way.  That  is  the  time  when  illusions  delight  and 
overcome  us.  Later  this  glow  vanishes ;  we  feel  the 
need  of  drawing  nearer  to  nature  and  real  life ;  the 
society,  the  exact  delineation  of  characters  and  man- 
ners interests  and  attracts  us  much  more." 

In  1813  tragedies  seemed  flat  to  the  Emperor.  His 
fate  was  the  greatest  of  tragedies.  Never  was  there 
a  greater,  a  more  thrilling  piece,  than  that  in  which 
he  took  the  leading  part,  and  had  for  his  support  all 
the  nations  of  Europe.  Racine  and  Corneille  sunk 
into  insignificance  before  Napoleon.  When  he  had 
reached  the  decisive  point  from  which  he  had  to  rise 
higher  or  to  fall  into  the  abyss,  the  great  actor  felt 
that  emotion,  that  combination  of  hope  and  anxiety, 
of  joy  and  pain,  which  distinguishes  the  supreme 
moment. 

War  is  the  first  of  games.  Battlefields  are  like 
huge  green  cloths  on  which  genius  and  chance  hold 
the  cards.  I  have  never  read  this  passage  from  La- 
cordaire's  Conferences  de  Toulouse  without  thinking 
of  Napoleon  :  "  Man  has  discovered  amid  the  laws  of 
numbers  and  movement  combinations  Avhich  express 
chances  but  not  certainty ;  and  chance  has  appeared 
as  the  sovereign  happiness ;  for  chance  responded  to 
one  of  his  strongest  needs,  the  dramatic  need  of  his 
nature.  He  wishes  to  create  for  himself  an  action. 
.  .  .  An  action  which  moves  him  by  its  great  inter- 
est, holds  him  in  suspense  by  a  complication  indepen- 
dent of  his  will,  and  at  last  saves  or  fells  him  by  a 
sudden  turn.  Every  other  drama  is  indifferent  to 


216  MARIE    LOUISE. 


him.  If  he  gazes  at  scenes  from  Sophocles  or  Coi- 
neille,  he  is  not  the  victim  or  the  hero ;  he  weeps  over 
remote  misfortunes  which  art  evokes  to  move  him. 
But  here  he  is  himself,  when  he  wishes,  as  he  wishes, 
to  the  extent  that  he  chooses.  Chance  and  cupidity 
together  make  him  the  sport  of  a  personal  drama, 
both  terrifying  and  joyous,  in  which  hope,  fear,  joy, 
gloom,  follow  one  another,  or  rather  combine  almost 
at  the  same  moment,  and  keep  him  panting  in  a  fever 
which  grows  to  madness ;  for  if  we  speak  of  the  pas- 
sion for  drink,  we  speak  of  the  fury  of  gambling." 

To  an  honorable  peace,  which  yet  imposed  upon  his 
pride  a  few  sacrifices,  Napoleon,  that  stubborn  and 
relentless  gambler,  preferred  war  with  all  Europe. 
"  It  was  doubtless,"  said  Thiers,  "  madness  for  him- 
self, a  cruelty  for  the  many  victims  doomed  to  perish 
in  the  battlefield,  a  sort  of  treason  against  France." 

After  having  won  fabulous  sums,  this  hardiest  of 
players,  lucky  up  to  that  day,  lost  suddenly  a  large 
portion  in  the  Russian  campaign.  He  wished  to  take 
his  revenge,  and  found  his  old  luck ;  his  gains  were 
considerable  :  Liitzen  and  Bautzen.  Had  he  been 
wise  he  would  then  have  been  satisfied ;  his  losses 
were  almost  made  good.  But  no !  that  was  not 
enough;  he  wanted  to  go  on  playing.  All  or 
nothing,  was  his  motto.  As  foolish  a  motto  as  well 
could  be ;  for  Fortune,  who  is  a  woman,  finally  tires 
of  her  greatest  favorites.  Once  more  !  shouted  Na- 
poleon. No  !  was  Fortune's  answer ;  and  by  wish- 
ing to  regain  the  whole,  he  lost  everything. 


THE    ARMISTICE.  217 


All  Europe  had  its  eyes  fixed  on  Dresden.  Except 
perhaps  the  Prussians,  who  were  aroused  to  the  high- 
est excitement,  and  thought  only  of  avenging  Jena, 
every  nation  desired  peace,  and  hoped  that  Napoleon's 
moderation  would  make  this  possible.  Such,  too,  was 
Metternich's  feeling  when  he  reached  the  capital  of 
Saxony  to  hold  a  decisive  conference  with  the  winner 
of  Liitzen. 

We  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  we  always 
have  a  little  distrust  of  narrations  made  from  mem- 
ory, especially  when  they  deal  with  so  long  an  inter- 
view as  that  which  took  place  at  the  Marcolini  Palace, 
June  26,  1813,  between  Napoleon  and  Metternich,  as 
is  recorded  by  the  Austrian  statesman  with  the  minut- 
est detail.  Reading  the  report  of  this  famous  con- 
versation, which  began  at  quarter  to  twelve,  and 
lasted  till  half-past  eight  in  the  evening,  one  would 
imagine  that  a  short-hand  writer  had  been  present, 
taking  down  every  word.  However  wonderful  a 
man's  memory  may  be,  it  is  incapable  of  such  a  feat. 
Doubtless  the  account  is  in  the  main  accurate ;  but 
the  form  cannot  be  literally  given,  and  many  of  the  sen- 
tences appear  to  us  to  belong  more  to  fiction  than  to  his- 
tory. The  two  principal  accounts  are  those  of  Prince 
Metternich  and  of  Thiers,  who  received  his  informa- 
tion from  the  Prince  ;  yet  the  two  reports  are  far  from 
being  absolutely  identical.  Thiers  took  care  to  say 
that  this  famous  interview  is  the  most  difficult  of  all 
those  in  which  Napoleon  took  part  to  reproduce,  from 
the  lack  of  satisfactory  documents.  He  says,  speak- 


218  MARIE    LOUISE. 


ing  of  this :  "  For  Napoleon's  other  interviews,  al- 
ready recorded  in  this  history,  there  existed  numerous 
documents,  either  in  our  own  diplomatic  archives,  or 
in  those  of  other  nations ;  but  for  this  one,  however, 
inasmuch  as  Napoleon  transmitted  no  account  of  it 
to  his  Ministers,  we  are  without  one  of  the  surest 
means  of  information.  He  contented  himself  with 
speaking  about  it  to  M.  de  Bassano,  who  was  later 
the  author  of  different  versions  that  were  published 
by  writers  with  whom  he  was  intimate.  This  memora- 
ble interview  would  then  be  nearly  lost,  if  M.  de  Met- 
ternich  had  not  written  it  down  at  great  length  and 
in  full  detail,  in  good  season.  He  kindly  favored  me 
with  a  copy  of  this  record,  which  seemed  to  me  too 
severe  to  Napoleon,  though  generally  accurate,  and  I 
have  preserved  everything  which  seemed  to  me  incon- 
testable." Evidently  such  an  arbitrary  selection  can 
only  approximate  the  truth.  The  interview  lasted 
more  than  eight  hours.  At  its  close,  the  two  inter- 
locutors who  had  begun  their  conversation  before 
noon,  were  in  the  dark.  No  one  had  dared  to  come 
into  the  room  with  a  light.  It  would  require  almost 
a  volume  to  give  a  faithful  report  of  so  long  a  conver- 
sation. Prince  Metternich  confines  himself  to  a  few 
pages.  Consequently  he  has  suppressed  a  good  deal, 
and  what  he  puts  down  in  his  Memoirs,  I  repeat,  does 
not  appear  to  me  absolutely  authoritative. 

Half  an  hour  after  the  interview  the  Minister  con- 
tented himself  with  sending  to  Emperor  Francis  a 
short  despatch,  accompanied  by  a  very  brief  docu- 


THE    ARMISTICE.  219 


ment  labelled :  "  Condensed  report  of  a  conversation 
with  the  Emperor  Napoleon." 

"This  long  interview,"  he  wrote,  "has  been  a 
confused  medley  of  the  most  curious  sort,  a  series 
of  protestations  of  friendship  mingled  with  the  most 
violent  outbreaks.  ...  4It  depends  on  Your  Maj- 
esty,' I  said  to  the  Emperor  Napoleon,  '  to  give  peace 
to  the  world,  to  establish  your  government  on  the 
surest  foundation,  on  a  feeling  of  universal  gratitude ; 
if  Your  Majesty  lets  this  opportunity  escape,  what 
limit  can  there  be  to  the  confusion  ? '  The  Emperor 
replied  that  he  was  willing  to  make  peace,  but  that 
he  would  die  before  he  would  make  a  dishonorable 
one.  I  made  answer  that  no  dishonorable  proposition 
could  ever  enter  the  Emperor  Francis's  calculations. 
4  Well !  What  do  you  mean  by  a  peace  ? '  the  Emperor 
interrupted.  'What  are  your  conditions?  Do  you 
wish  to  despoil  me  ?  Do  you  want  Italy,  Brabant, 
Lorraine?  I  shall  not  give  up  an  inch  of  territory; 
I  will  make  peace  on  the  basis  of  statu  quo  ante 
bellum.  I  will  even  give  Russia  a  part  of  the  Duchy 
of  Warsaw;  I  will  give  you  nothing,  because  you 
have  not  beaten  me ;  I  will  give  nothing  to  Prussia, 
because  she  has  played  me  false.  If  you  want  West- 
ern Calicia,  if  Prussia  wants  part  of  her  former 
possessions,  that  may  be  arranged;  but  there  must 
be  some  compensations.  In  that  case  you  will  have 
to  indemnify  my  allies.  The  conquest  of  Illyria  cost 
me  three  hundred  thousand  men;  if  you  want  to 
have  it,  you  must  give  an  equal  number  of  men.' 


220  MARIE    LOUISE. 


After  this  first  outbreak,  I  replied :  '  I  am  not  called 
upon  to  discuss  here  the  conditions  of  future  peace, 
but  simply  to  insist  on  the  speediest  opening  of  nego- 
tiations through  Austria,  or  else  on  the  Emperor's 
refusal  to  negotiate  through  its  mediation.  Let  the 
negotiators  meet,  and  nothing  can  stand  in  the  way 
of  a  discussion  of  the  conditions  of  peace ;  in  this 
important  juncture  Austria  will  perform  its  duty  as 
mediator  with  absolute  impartiality.' " 

This  document,  written  half  an  hour  after  the 
interview,  bears  the  ear-mark  of  indisputable  authen- 
ticity. It  is  a  summary  in  which,  to  our  thinking, 
the  respective  situation  of  the  interlocutors  is  clearly 
and  exactly  expressed.  As  for  the  fuller  report  in 
Prince  Metternich's  Memoirs,  it  is  very  impressive 
on  account  of  its  dramatic  character ;  but  on  certain 
points  it  seems  that  it  should  be  accepted  with  re- 
serve. Is  it,  for  example,  probable,  that  Napoleon, 
who  up  to  that  time  had  reason  only  to  praise  Marie 
Louise,  and  who  openly  congratulated  himself  on  the 
way  she  performed  her  duties  as  Regent,  should  have 
said  to  Metternich :  "  Three  times  I  have  re-established 
the  Emperor  Francis  on  his  throne ;  I  promised  to 
remain  at  peace  with  him  as  long  as  I  lived ;  I  married 
his  daughter.  I  said  to  myself  then :  '  You  are  doing 
a  foolish  thing ' ;  but  it's  done ;  I  am  sorry  for  it 
now  "  ?  Is  it  likely  that  Napoleon  would  have  said 
a  second  time :  "  Yes,  I  did  a  very  stupid  thing  in 
marrying  the  Archduchess " ;  and  that  Metternich 
should  have  answered :  "  Since  Your  Majesty  desires 


THE    ARMISTICE.  221 

to  know  my  opinion,  I  will  tell  him  very  frankly  that 
Napoleon  the  Conqueror  made  a  blunder  "  ? 

Is  it  probable  that  the  Emperor,  returning  for  the 
third  time  to  the  expression  of  the  same  regret, 
should  again  say :  "  Yes,  everything  confirms  me  in 
the  opinion  that  I  committed  an  unpardonable  blun- 
der ;  by  marrying  the  Archduchess  I  hoped  to  unite 
the  present  and  the  past,  Gothic  prejudices,  and  the 
institutions  of  my  time ;  I  made  a  mistake,  and  I  now 
see  all  the  consequences  of  my  error;  it  may  cost 
me  my  throne,  but  I  shall  bury  the  world  beneath 
its  ruins"? 

Is  it  probable  that  Napoleon  could  have  carried  his 
boasting  so  far  as  to  say :  "  How  many  allies  are 
you  ?  Four,  five,  six,  twenty  ?  The  more  numerous 
you  are,  the  calmer  I  shall  be  "  ?  Is  it  probable  that 
he  should  have  used  this  figure  :  "  I  have  grown  up 
on  battlefields,  and  a  man  like  me  cares  little  for  the 
life  of  a  million  men.  .  .  .  The  French  can't  com- 
plain of  me  ;  to  spare  them  I  sacrificed  the  Germans 
and  the  Poles  I  lost  three  hundred  thousand  men 
in  the  Russian  campaign,  but  in  that  number  there 
were  not  more  than  thirty  thousand  Frenchmen  "  ? 

Prince  Metternich  thus  describes  the  end  of  the 
interview :  "  It  was  dark.  No  one  had  dared  to  enter 
the  room.  Not  a  moment  of  silence  interrupted  the 
hot  discussion.  Six  different  times  my  words  were 
equivalent  to  a  declaration  of  war.  .  .  .  When 
Napoleon  dismissed  me,  he  had  become  calm  and 
gentle.  I  could  not  see  his  face.  He  went  with  me 


222  MARIE    LOUISE. 


to  the  door  of  the  anteroom ;  as  he  laid  his  hand  on 
the  door-knob,  he  said  to  me : 

"  '  We  shall  meet  again,  I  hope.' 

"  '  I  am  at  your  orders,  Sire,'  I  replied;  ' but  I  have 
no  hope  of  attaining  the  object  of  my  mission.' 

"'Well,'  resumed  Napoleon,  laying  his  hand  on 
my  shoulder,  '  do  you  know  what  will  happen  ?  You 
will  not  make  war  against  me.' 

" '  You  are  a  ruined  man,  Sire,'  I  exclaimed  warmly ; 
4 1  had  a  presentiment  of  it  when  I  came  here ;  now 
I  am  sure  of  it.'  v 

All  this  seems  to  us  very  improbable.  On  the 
morrow  of  Liitzen  and  Bautzen,  no  one  spoke  in  that 
way  to  Napoleon.  We  are  inclined  to  think  that 
Metternich  rather  expressed  regret. 

The  Baron  of  Bausset  says  in  his  Memoirs  that 
during  the  whole  interview  the  King  of  Saxony  and 
the  King  of  Naples  waited  to  know  the  result,  in 
either  the  anteroom  or  the  garden.  "  When  he  left," 
he  says,  "  M.  de  Metternich  seemed  to  me  excited. 
He  waited  silently  at  the  palace  door  until  the 
Emperor,  who  had  left  the  room  at  the  same  time 
with  him,  had  got  on  his  horse.  I  silently  studied 
M.  de  Metternich's  face,  as  I  had  long  known  him ; 
he  took  my  hand  mechanically,  pressed  it  warmly, 
and  held  it  for  a  few  minutes  without  saying  a  word. 
This  silent,  almost  convulsive  parting,  troubled  me, 
and  seemed  to  express  all  the  fate  of  the  Empire." 

June  30  Metternich  again  saw  Napoleon  and  found 
him  perfectly  serene.  What  the  Emperor  especially 


TBE   ARMISTICE.  223 


desired  was  the  prolongation  of  the  armistice,  in 
order  to  complete  his  armaments.  He  was  amiable, 
familiar,  courteous,  with  the  Austrian  Minister.  "  So 
you  insist,"  he  said  to  him,  laughing,  "  on  threatening 
us  ?  "  The  Convention  was  signed  without  difficulty, 
and  Metternich,  who  was  treated  with  the  utmost 
courtesy,  returned  to  the  Emperor  Francis.  At 
Prague  he  saw  the  Count  of  Narbonne,  and  frankly 
exposed  the  situation  to  him.  "  The  limit  of  August 
10  once  reached,  there  will  not  be  a  word  said  about 
peace,  and  war  will  be  declared.  We  shall  not  be 
neutral ;  the  Emperor  Napoleon  need  not  flatter  him- 
self. ...  I  give  you  my  word  and  my  Sovereign's 
that  we  have  made  no  engagements  with  any  one. 
But  I  also  give  you  my  word  that  at  midnight  of 
August  10  we  shall  have  some  with  every  one  except 
you,  and  that  on  the  morning  of  the  17th  you  will 
have  three  hundred  thousand  Austrians  more  on  your 
hands.  It  is  not  lightly,  not  without  pain,  for  he  is 
a  father  and  he  loves  his  daughter,  that  the  Emperor 
has  formed  this  resolution  ;  but  he  owes  it  to  his 
people,  to  himself,  to  Europe,  to  restore  tranquillity, 
since  he  has  the  power,  and  since,  besides,  the  only 
alternative  is  some  day  in  the  future  to  fall  beneath 
your  blows,  in  a  condition  of  dependency  worse  than 
that  into  which  you  have  put  Prussia.  Don't  come 
telling  us  after  the  event  that  we  have  deceived  you. 
Up  to  midnight,  August  10,  everything  is  possible, 
even  at  the  last  hour;  the  10th  of  August  passed, 
not  a  day's,  not  a  moment's  respite ;  war,  war  with 
every  one,  even  with  us  !  " 


224  MARIE    LOUISE. 


In  1808,  at  Erfurt,  Napoleon  was  conversing  with 
Goethe.  The  hero  of  Austerlitz  and  the  author  of 
Faust  discussed  ancient  tragedy  and  the  notion  of 
fate.  "What  have  we  to  do  with  fatality  nowa- 
days?" Napoleon  broke  out;  "fatality  is  politics." 
Yes,  it  is  politics,  that,  at  certain,  solemn,  historical 
moments,  —  in  1813,  in  1870,  for  example,  —  with  a 
certain  fascination,  leads  sovereigns  to  an  abyss  which 
they  see  but  cannot  avoid.  Presentiments,  flashes  of 
wisdom  light  up  here  and  there  the  blackness  of  the 
night  into  which  they  have  voluntarily  plunged ;  but 
they  are  sure  to  deaden  that  importunate  light  with 
their  own  hands,  and  to  march  with  bowed  head, 
amid  the  gloom,  towards  the  gulf. 


XV. 

MAYENCE. 

I)  EFORE  resuming  the  conflict,  Napoleon  wished 
I  3  to  take  advantage  of  the  armistice  to  spend  a 
few  days  with  Marie  Louise,  and  he  asked  her  to  join 
him  at  Mayence.  He  still  loved  her  sincerely,  and 
thought  that  she  might  be  of  some  use  to  him.  He 
fancied  that  the  regard  with  which  he  treated  her 
might  make  a  good  impression  in  Vienna,  and 
although  he  knew  that  the  Prague  Congress  would 
be  barren  of  result,  he  wanted  peace  to  be  thought 
probable,  and  he  pretended  that  he  himself  hoped 
for  it.  To  the  Archchancellor  he  wrote  this  letter,  to 
arrange  for  the  Empress's  journey :  — 

" Dresden,  July  16, 1813.  MY  COUSIN:  This  letter 
leaves  the  16th,  and  will  reach  you  on  the  20th.  I 
wish  the  Empress  to  leave  on  the  22d,  so  that  she 
may  be  at  Mayence  on  the  24th.  She  will  bring  the 
Duchess  of  Montebello,  two  ladies  in  waiting,  two 
Eastern  women,  two  negresses,  a  Prefect  of  the  Pal- 
ace, two  chamberlains,  two  equerries,  of  whom  one 
shall  start  twenty-four  hours  in  advance  for  Metz,  so 
that  they  may  divide  the  journey  between  them ;  four 

226 


226  MARIE   LOUISE. 


pages,  to  be  distributed  along  the  way,  in  order  to 
make  the  trip  less  fatiguing  for  the  young  fellows ; 
her  private  secretary,  if  he  is  well,  and  her  physician. 
Moreover,  she  will  bring  servants  and  a  dinner  ser- 
vice so  that  her  table  may  be  well  served ;  for  I  shall 
not  take  any  one  with  me,  and  it  is  possible  that 
several  German  Kings  and  Princes  may  call  on  her. 
Still  she  need  not  bring  the  silver-gilt  service. 
Count  Caffarelli  will  accompany  the  Empress  to  look 
after  the  escorts.  The  Empress  will  spend  the  first 
night  at  Chalons,  at  the  Prefecture ;  the  second  at 
Metz,  at  the  Prefecture ;  the  third  at  Mayence.  Her 
trip  will  be  announced  in  these  three  cities  so  that 
due  honors  may  be  paid  her.  There  will  be  four  car- 
riages in  the  first  set,  four  in  the  second,  four  in  the 
third:  twelve  carriages  in  all.  So  far  as  possible, 
the  military  commandant  will  supply  escorts.  The 
gens  d'armes  along  the  route  will  be  under  arms,  in 
full  uniform.  All  the  prescribed  ceremonial  will  be 
observed.  The  general  commanding  each  division 
will  accompany  her  in  the  territory  of  his  division. 

"  The  day  of  the  Empress's  departure  you  will  have 
inserted  in  the  Moniteur  an  article  running  thus: 
4  Her  Majesty  the  Empress,  Queen,  and  Regent,  has 
left  to  spend  a  week  at  Mayence,  in  the  hope  of 
meeting  His  Majesty  the  Emperor  there.  Her  Maj- 
esty will  sleep  the  22d  at  Chalons,  the  23d  at  Metz, 
and  the  24th  at  Mayence.  Her  Majesty  will  return 
early  in  August.' 

"You  will  send  me  word  by  telegraph  when  the 


MAYENCE.  227 


Empress  leaves  Saint  Cloud  and  when  she  is  to  reach 
Mayence ;  I  shall  arrange  my  departure  accordingly. 
If  any  Ministers  have  anything  important  to  say  to 
me,  and  desire  to  come  to  confer  with  me,  they  can 
avail  themselves  of  my  stay  at  Mayence  and  visit  me 
between  July  24  and  August  1.  And  now  I  pray 
God  to  have  you  in  his  holy  keeping." 

Marie  Louise  started  from  Saint  Cloud  July  23, 
and  slept  at  Chalons  and  at  Metz,  where  she  received 
the  principal  authorities,  and  reached  Mayence  the 
26th,  at  four  in  the  morning,  in  wretched  weather. 
She  feared  that  the  Emperor  might  have  got  there 
before  her ;  but  he  did  not  arrive  till  the  same  day,  at 
eleven  in  the  evening.  He  was  in  good  health.  His 
complexion  was  brightened  and  sunburnt  by  the  cam- 
paign. He  embraced  his  wife  tenderly  and  expressed 
the  utmost  confidence  in  the  future.  The  next  morn- 
ing he  watched  the  troops  parade,  and  started  the  squad- 
rons and  battalions  which  were  passing  the  Rhine  to  join 
the  army.  The  Grand  Duke  and  the  Grand  Duchess 
of  Baden,  the  Prince  Primate,  the  Prince  of  Nassau, 
the  Grand  Duke  of  Hesse-Darmstadt,  came  to  pay 
their  court. 

The  Prefect  of  Mayence,  the  chief  town  of  the 
department  of  Mont  Tonnerre,  happened  to  be  a 
former  member  of  the  Convention,  and  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  Public  Safety,  by  name  Jean  Bon  Saint 
Andre*.  He  was  a  tireless  worker,  an  admirable 
administrator,  of  simple  tastes  and  austere  appearance, 
with  the  bearing  and  tastes  of  a  peasant  of  the  Dan- 


228  MARIE   LOUISE. 


ube  ;  in  a  word,  the  old  Revolutionary  had  preserved 
the  Republican  airs  of  his  youth  after  he  had  become 
an  Imperial  functionary.  Count  Beugnot,  who  at 
that  time  governed  the  Grand  Duchy  of  Berg,  as 
Minister  of  the  Emperor,  and  who  had  come  from 
Diisseldorf  to  Mayence  to  pay  his  respects  to  his 
sovereign,  has  drawn  in  his  Memoirs  a  very  curious 
portrait  of  the  former  member  of  the  Convention, 
then  a  Prefect  of  the  Empire,  who,  dressed  partly  in 
uniform,  partly,  including  his  cravat,  in  black,  greatly 
disturbed  the  gilded  band  of  courtiers.  He  replied 
to  their  remarks  somewhat  as  follows :  "  Indeed,  I 
greatly  admire  your  courage  in  busying  yourself 
about  my  dress  and  the  color  of  my  stockings,  when 
I  am  going  to  dine  with  the  Emperor  and  Empress. 
You  don't  express  everything;  you  are  scandalized 
at  seeing  me  invited  to  such  a  dinner,  and  as  soon  as 
I  have  turned  my  back  you  will  say :  '  In  fact,  its  in- 
conceivable that  the  Emperor  should  invite  to  dine 
with  the  Empress,  the  new  Empress,  a  member  of 
the  Convention,  a  "voter,"  a  colleague  of  Robespierre 
on  the  Committee  of  Public  Safety,  who  is  rank  with 
Jacobinism.' " 

"  Oh !  M.  Jean  Bon,  how  can  you  put  such  stu- 
pidity into  our  mouths  !  We  respect  you  too  much 
to  allow  ourselves  —  " 

"  Not  at  all,  gentlemen ;  that  is  not  stupidity,  but 
the  pure  truth.  I  will  confess  that  Europe  had  then 
conspired  against  France,  as  it  has  to-day.  It  had 
drawn  an  iron  girdle  about  us.  Treachery  had 


MAYENCE.  229 


already  surrendered  some  important  cities,  and  it  was 
spreading.  Well!  the  Kings  were  beaten.  We  re- 
covered our  own  territory  and  carried  into  theirs  the 
invasion  which  they  had  begun  against  us.  We  con- 
quered Belgium  and  the  left  bank  of  the  Rhine  which 
we  joined  then  to  ourselves,  although  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  war  they  forbade  the  division.  We  ex- 
tended our  preponderance  and  compelled  those  same 
Kings  to  sue  for  peace.  Do  you  know  what  govern- 
ment secured  and  prepared  those  results  ?  A  govern- 
ment consisting  of  members  of  the  Convention,  of 
furious  Jacobins,  wearing  red  caps,  rough  woollen, 
and  sabots,  living  on  coarse  bread  and  bad  beer,  who 
flung  themselves  on  mattresses  laid  on  the  floor  of 
the  place  where  they  held  their  meetings  when  they 
were  worn  out  by  extreme  "fatigue  and  long  watch- 
ings.  Those  were  the  men  who  saved  France.  I 
was  one  of  them,  gentlemen ;  and  here,  as  well  as 
in  the  Emperor's  apartments  which  I  am  about  to 
enter,  I  am  proud  of  it.  ...  Besides,  let  us  wait 
a  little.  Fortune  is  fickle ;  she  has  raised  France 
very  high ;  sooner  or  later,  who  knows,  she  may  cast 
her  down  as  low  as  she  was  in  1793.  Then  we  shall 
see  if  she  will  be  saved  by  soothing  measures,  and 
what  will  be  the  good  of  decorations,  embroideries, 
feathers,  and  especially  white  silk  stockings." 

After  thus  speaking  to  the  courtiers,  Jean  Bon 
dined  with  Napoleon  and  Marie  Louise.  The  Em- 
peror's brow  was  dark  and  he  seemed  buried  in 
thought.  He  ate  but  little.  Two  or  three  times  he 


230  MARIE    LOUISE. 


spoke  to  the  Prince  of  Nassau  without  listening  to 
his  answers,  so  that  the  two  seemed  to  be  at  cross 
purposes.  The  Empress  had  an  opportunity  to  utter 
a  few  words,  which  she  did  very  modestly. 

Count  Beugnot,  who  was  one  of  the  guests,  says  that 
before  the  dinner  the  Emperor  had  wished  to  take  a 
little  sail  on  the  Rhine,  to  try  a  little  boat  which  the 
Prince  of  Nassau  had  just  given  him.  He  went  from 
the  Palace  of  the  Teutonic  Order  to  the  river  bank, 
and  got  into  the  boat  with  the  Prince  of  Nassau,  M. 
Jean  Bon  Saint  Andre*,  M.  Beugnot,  two  aides,  an 
adjutant  of  the  Palace,  and  his  Mameluke  Rustan. 
Through  a  field-glass  he  examined  a  fine  vineyard  on 
the  right  bank  of  the  Rhine,  in  the  middle  of  which 
rose  the  Castle  of  Biberich.  While  the  Emperor 
stood  at  one  side  of  the  boat,  near  the  edge,  lost  in 
contemplation,  Jean  Bon  Saint  Andre*  said  to  Count 
Beugnot :  "  What  a  singular  thing !  The  fate  of  the 
world  hangs  on  a  single  kick,  more  or  less."  "In 
Heaven's  name,  hush !  "  exclaimed  Count  Beugnot  in 
terror.  "  Don't  distress  yourself,"  the  old  member  of 
the  Convention  went  on,  "resolute  men  are  rare." 
When  the  sail  was  over,  the  dialogue  between  the 
administrator  of  the  Grand  Duchy  of  Berg  and  the 
Prefect  of  Mayence  continued  on  the  steps  of  the 
grand  staircase  of  the  Palace  of  the  Teutonic  Order : 
"  Do  you  know  that  you  gave  me  a  real  scare  ?  " 
"  Of  course  I  know  it.  I  am  surprised  you  recovered 
the  use  of  your  legs  enough  to  walk ;  but  you  can 
be  sure  that  we  shall  lament  with  tears  of  blood 


MATENCE.  231 


that  this  trip  to-day  was  not  his  last."  "  You  are  a 
madman ! "  "  And  you,  saving  the  respect  I  owe 
Your  Excellency,  are  a  fool !  " 

Meanwhile,  Napoleon  appeared  even  more  formid- 
able. There  was  no  breach  of  order  throughout  his 
immense  Empire.  From  Rome  to  Hamburg  perfect 
obedience  prevailed.  The  young  army,  as  well  as 
the  Old  Guard,  displayed  enthusiastic  bravery.  The 
Princes  of  the  Confederation  of  the  Rhine  conducted 
themselves  like  faithful  vassals.  It  was  not  known 
that  the  Emperor  of  Austria  intended  to  abandon 
the  French  alliance,  and  no  one  imagined  that  he 
was  working  to  overthrow  his  daughter's  throne.  It 
was  said  that  Napoleon's  power  would  suffer  some 
slight  diminution,  but  no  one  believed  that  he  would 
be  ruined.  The  Bourbons  were  never  mentioned. 
They  were  almost  unknown  in  France,  and  kindled 
sympathy  at  the  courts  of  Vienna,  Berlin,  or  Saint 
Petersburg.  At  Mayence,  the  hero  of  Liitzen  and 
Bautzen  received  as  much  homage  as  in  his  most 
brilliant  days.  The  Imperial  star  still  shone  in  sight 
of  every  one,  like  a  setting  sun. 

Marie  Louise,  who  more  than  anything  dreaded  a 
rupture  between  her  husband  and  her  father,  had 
moments  of  uneasiness.  Napoleon  did  his  best  to 
reassure  her,  and  talked  continually  of  peace,  even 
when  he  was  perfectly  determined  on  war.  He  was 
much  touched  by  the  attachment  with  which  he 
seemed  to  inspire  the  daughter  of  the  Caesars  of  Ger- 
many, and  he  expressed  the  utmost  regard  for  her, 


232  MARIE    LOUISE. 


as  much  from  motives  of  policy  as  from  affection; 
for  he  wished  to  encourage  the  Emperor  Francis  to 
remain  a  good  father,  by  remaining  a  good  husband. 
The  Empress,  ever  tranquil  and  majestic,  gave  no 
outward  sign  of  her  gloomy  forebodings,  and  drove 
out  every  day  in  a  barouche  through  the  country 
about  Mayence.  The  weather  had  become  very  fine, 
and  the  clear  sky  made  a  marked  contrast  with  the 
vain  agitations  of  men. 

August  1  Napoleon  left  Mayence  after  bidding 
farewell  to  Marie  Louise,  whom  he  kissed  in  presence 
of  the  whole  court.  This  time  she  could  not  control 
her  emotion,  and  burst  into  tears.  August  4,  after 
stopping  at  Wiirzburg,  Bamberg,  and  Bayreuth,  to 
hold  reviews,  he  was  back  in  Dresden,  more  confi- 
dent, more  eager  for  war  than  ever.  In  vain  had 
Caulaincourt  written  to  him:  "Every  sacrifice  now 
made  in  behalf  of  peace  will  render  you,  Sire,  more 
powerful  than  your  victories  have  done,  and  you  will 
be  the  idol  of  your  people."  He  remained  deaf  to 
the  words  qf  his  most  faithful  servants,  and  appeared 
more  determined  than  ever  to  risk  everything  on  a 
single  throw. 

As  for  the  Empress,  she  left  Mayence  August  2, 
and  embarked  upon  the  Rhine  in  the  yacht  which  the 
Prince  of  Nassau  had  put  at  her  disposition.  Her 
suite  consisted  of  the  Duchess  of  Montebello,  the 
Count  of  Beauharnais,  Mesdames  de  Lauriston  and 
de  Talhonet,  General  Caffarelli,  two  chamberlains,  a 
Prefect  of  the  Palace,  and  the  Baron  of  Me*neval. 


MAYENCE.  233 


Between  Mayence  and  Cologne  she  admired  the  banks 
of  the  picturesque  and  poetic  river,  with  its  fertile 
fields,  its  cliffs,  and  its  castles  of  the  Middle  Ages. 
At  Coblenz,  where  she  arrived  August  3,  she  was 
greeted  by  the  ringing  of  bells,  artillery  salutes, 
and  flourishes  of  trumpets ;  and  she  appeared  much 
touched  by  this  brilliant  reception,  which  she  had 
not  expected.  At  Cologne  she  left  the  yacht,  and 
continued  her  journey  by  post.  August  5  she  was 
at  Aix-la-Chapelle,  where  she  visited  the  cathedral. 
Then  she  passed  through  Liege,  Namur,  Soissons, 
-Compiegne.  August  9,  at  seven  in  the  evening,  she 
was  back  at  Saint  Cloud,  where  she  met  her  son  as 
she  alighted  from  her  carriage,  and  she  pressed  him 
tenderly  in  her  arms. 


XVI. 

THE  LAST   FESTIVITIES. 

WHEN  Marie  Louise  had  returned  to  Saint 
Cloud  and  was  no  longer  within  reach  of 
her  husband's  cheering  words,  she  became  profoundly 
melancholy.  Her  only  consolation  was  the  sight  of 
her  son,  a  superb  boy,  whose  strength  and  intelligence 
were  developing  most  remarkably.  The  Queen  of 
Naples  had  made  him  a  present  of  a  little  gilded  car- 
riage, to  which  the  skilful  riding-master  Franconi  had 
harnessed  two  trained  sheep,  like  horses.  Whenever 
the  infant  King  was  seen  driving  in  this  pretty  car- 
riage, under  the  venerable  trees  in  the  gardens  of 
Saint  Cloud,  he  inspired  tender  admiration.  Marie 
Louise  was  proud  of  her  son;  but  the  more  she 
loved  him,  the  more  anxious  she  felt  as  to  the  lot 
reserved  for  this  child  whose  cradle  had  been  saluted 
with  so  much  applause  and  homage.  The  letters  she 
wrote  at  that  time  to  the  Emperor  Francis  were 
marked  by  a  melancholy  akin  to  discouragement. 
"  I  am  in  a  painful  uncertainty  about  the  issue  of 
the  negotiations,"  she  wrote  to  him,  August  12, 1813. 
"Heaven  grant  that  there  may  be  no  war!  The 
234 


THE   LAST   FESTIVITIES.  235 

thought  of  it  horribly  alarms  me.  If  war  breaks 
out,  I  hope  you  will  not  be  mixed  up  in  it,  for  I  can- 
not bear  to  think  of  its  consequences.  I  found  the 
Emperor  very  well  at  Mayence.  He  has  gained 
flesh.  Unfortunately  I  saw  him  for  only  six  days. 
On  my  return  I  found  my  son  very  well  and  very 
gay.  He  already  talks,  and  is  very  amiable.  The 
Emperor  sends  me  to  Cherbourg  for  the  inauguration 
of  the  basin." 

What  the  Empress  most  feared,  a  war  between  her 
father  and  her  husband,  became  imminent.  The 
Count  of  Narbonne's  prophecies  came  true.  He  had 
written :  "  No  defection  is  more  certain  than  one  that 
is  involuntary ;  which  is  not  determined  some  morning 
out  of  calculation  or  passion,  but  which  grows  from 
day  to  day.  .  .  .  The  Emperor  Napoleon  counts  too 
much  on  family  ties.  The  titles  of  son-in-law  and 
father-in-law  seem  to  him  like  indissoluble  bonds.  It 
is  true  that,  according  to  an  old  diplomatic  saying, 
Austria  re-establishes  itself  by  marriages ;  but  there 
is  also  truth  in  the  Italian  proverb,  '  When  the  storm 
is  over,  the  saint  is  laughed  at.'  " 

Throughout  Austria  the  war-feeling  was  at  its 
height.  War  was  demanded  as  a  means  of  recover- 
ing lost  fame.  Prince  Schwarzenberg,  who  was  ap- 
pointed Commander-in-Chief,  tried  to  wipe  out  the 
memory  of  his  former  zeal  for  the  French  alliance. 
The  last  convention  had  prolonged  the  armistice  until 
the  10th  of  August,  with  a  delay  of  six  days  between 
the  denunciation  of  the  armistice  and  the  renewal  of 


236  MAEIE  LOUISE. 


hostilities.  Consequently  the  war  would  be  resumed 
August  17,  unless  the  Prague  Congress  should  estab- 
lish immediate  peace.  After  much  backing  and 
filling,  and  many  delays,  which  were  ascribed  to 
Napoleon,  the  Congress  at  last  met,  July  29 ;  France 
was  represented  by  the  Duke  of  Vicenza  and  the 
Count  of  Narbonne  ;  Austria  by  Metternich ;  Russia 
by  M.  d'Anstett;  Prussia  by  the  Baron  von  Hum- 
boldt.  Their  deliberations  were  a  mere  matter  of 
form. 

The  Duke  of  Bassano,  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs, 
had  written  to  the  Count  of  Narbonne :  "  I  send  you 
more  powers  than  power ;  you  will  have  your  hands 
tied,  but  your  legs  and  mouth  free  for  walking  and 
dining."  Napoleon's  infatuation  had  reached  such  a 
height  that  he  imagined  that  he  could  not  make  any 
concession  to  Austria.  The  Duke  of  Bassano  had 
written  to  the  Duke  of  Vicenza,  July  21 :  "  The  Em- 
peror's intention  is  to  negotiate  with  Russia  and  to 
make  a  glorious  peace  for  that  power ;  a  peace  that 
shall  punish  Austria  for  her  bad  faith  in  breaking 
the  alliance  of  1812,  by  depriving  her  of  her  influence 
in  Europe,  and  shall  also  draw  Russia  and  France 
nearer  together.  The  Emperor  intends  to  arrange 
matters  in  a  way  that  will  not  force  him  some  day 
to  disentangle  complications  with  Russia.  If  Rus- 
sia secures  an  advantageous  peace,  she  will  have 
purchased  it  by  the  devastation  of  her  provinces,  by 
the  loss  of  her  capital,  and  by  two  years  of  terrible 
warfare,  misfortunes  from  which  she  will  long  suffer. 


THE    LAST   FESTIVITIES.  237 

Austria,  on  the  other  hand,  has  made  no  sacrifices, 
and  has  deserved  nothing.  If  she  derives  any  profit 
from  her  present  intrigues,  she  would  foster  others  in 
order  to  obtain  new  advantages.  The  aims  of  her 
demands  on  France  are  infinite.  One  concession 
would  encourage  her  to  urge  another.  It  is  hence 
for  the  interest  of  France  that  she  do  not  acquire  a 
single  village." 

The  Duke  of  Vicenza,  a  clear-sighted  man,  received 
these  imprudent  instructions  with  regret.  On  his 
arrival  at  Prague,  he  wrote  to  the  Minister,  July  28 : 
"  We  are  already  on  a  volcano ;  the  minutes  are  num- 
bered; our  delays  have  produced  a  bad  impression. 
Everything  I  hear  makes  me  doubly  regret  that  the 
Emperor  should  have  bound  your  hands  and  mine 
more  tightly  than  he  promised."  Metternich  contin- 
ually said  to  the  French  plenipotentiaries  that  up  to 
August  10  matters  were  not  desperate,  but  that  after 
that  date,  if  peace  was  not  concluded,  Austria's  mission 
as  a  mediatorial  power  would  be  at  an  end.  This 
date  of  August  10  was  to  be  fatal  to  the  Empire,  as 
it  had  been  twenty-one  years  before  to  royalty. 

August  3,  Metternich  said  to  the  Duke  of  Vicenza : 
"  There  can  no  longer  be  any  doubt  about  your  Sov- 
ereign's intentions.  The  Emperor  Napoleon  has 
merely  tried  to  gain  time.  The  armistice  is  entirely 
to  his.  advantage ;  it  is  injurious  to  the  allies.  They 
sincerely  desire  peace,  and  a  moderate  peace ;  it  would 
be  made  if  the  Emperor,  your  master,  had^wishejijt. 
Probably  it  is  now  too  late." 

UNIVERSITY 

V 


238  MARIE    LOUISE. 


The  same  day  Napoleon  sent  from  Dresden  to  the 
Duke  of  Vicenza  a  despatch,  all  of  which  he  dictated 
himself;  in  it  he  said:  "The  Emperor  commands 
you,  by  an  extra-ministerial  channel,  to  do  as  follows, 
without  the  knowledge  of  the  Count  of  Narbonne. 
This  step  has  for  its  object  to  ascertain  in  what  way 
Austria  judges  that  peace  can  be  made,  and  whether, 
in  case  the  Emperor  adheres  to  his  propositions,  Aus- 
tria would  make  common  cause  with  us,  or  would 
remain  neutral.  There  is  no  question  of  negotiations, 
but  of  an  absolutely  confidential  overture,  which 
rests  on  such  obvious  feelings  that  it  would  be  a 
renunciation  of  the  aim  which  Austria  says  that  she 
desires,  if  she  should  not  answer  without  reserve. 
This  step  will  always  remain  secret,  and  as  soon  as 
the  Emperor  Napoleon  shall  be  certain  of  Austria's 
last  word,  he  will  give  instructions  in  consequence 
to  his  plenipotentiaries.  The  simplicity  of  this  step 
carries  with  it  the  mark  of  the  man  who  makes  it, 
and  of  his  firmness.  M.  de  Metternich,  then,  must 
see  that  it  is  necessary  for  him  to  set  his  lowest 
terms,  and  propose  nothing  dishonorable  for  the  Em- 
peror Napoleon.  M.  de  Metternich  will  probably 
require  twenty-four  hours ;  twenty-four  hours  will  be 
granted  him,  and  the  conditions  will  be  written  down 
at  his  dictation.  Our  answer  will  be  given  in  three 
days,  and  thereby  all  the  embarrassments  of  the  Con- 
gress and  all  the  difficulties  that  beset  it  will  be  dis- 
pelled. The  Emperor  Napoleon  is  more  thoroughly 
prepared  for  war  than  he  can  ever  expect  to  be ;  but 


THE    LAST   FESTIVITIES.  239 

inasmuch  as  he  is  consistent  in  his  policy,  before 
abandoning  his  alliance  with  Austria  and  destroying 
a  system  which  the  two  powers  had  regarded  as  the 
foundation  of  their  common  security,  which  they 
liked  to  establish  on  personal  feelings,  he  desires  this 
question  answered,  and  to  weigh  carefully  the  advan- 
tages and  disadvantages.  Before  you  make  this  over- 
ture, you  will  ask  M.  de  Metternich  not  to  repeat  to 
the  Emperor  of  Austria  what  you  may  say,  and  not 
to  transmit  it  to  any  of  the  allied  powers.  Likewise 
you  will  give  your  word  that  everything  said  in  this 
interview  will  be  kept  profoundly  secret  by  yourself." 

Thus,  M.  de  Narbonne  himself,  this  favorite  Ambas- 
sador, this  trusted  agent,  was  not  admitted  to  this 
secret.  This  was  a  singular  diplomacy  by  which  a 
sovereign  kept  from  his  own  plenipotentiary  the 
most  important  point  of  the  negotiations. 

August  6  the  Duke  of  Vicenza  had  a  very  secret 
interview  with  Metternich,  in  which  he  informed  him 
of  Napoleon's  confidential  overtures.  The  Austrian 
Minister  appeared  much  surprised.  He  thought  the 
step  was  taken  very  late,  and  declared  once  more  that 
the  negotiations  could  not  be  prolonged  beyond  Au- 
gust 10,  the  date  irrevocably  fixed.  Nevertheless,  he 
went  to  Brandeiss  where  the  Emperor  Francis  was, 
to  receive  his  sovereign's  orders.  After  some  hes- 
itation the  Emperor  consented  to  dictate  to  his  Min- 
ister a  despatch  which  was  Austria's  final  word,  its 
ultimatum.  The  conditions  which  it  set  for  peace 
were  as  follows  :  "  Dissolution  of  the  Duchy  of  War- 


240  MARIE   LOUISE. 


saw,  which  shall  be  divided  between  Russia,  Austria, 
and  Prussia.  Dantzic  shall  be  restored  to  Prussia. 
Restoration  of  Hamburg  and  Liibeck  to  their  con- 
ditions as  free  Hanseatic  cities,  and  a  later  arrange- 
ment, connected  with  the  general  peace,  regarding 
the  other  parts  of  the  32d  Military  Division.  The 
renunciation  of  the  Protectorate  of  the  Confederation 
of  the  Rhine,  so  that  the  independence  of  the  reign- 
ing sovereigns  of  Germany  shall  be  placed  under 
the  guaranty  of  the  great  powers.  Reconstruction 
of  Prussia,  with  a  suitable  frontier  on  the  Elbe. 
Cession  of  the  Illyrian  provinces  to  Austria.  Re- 
ciprocal guaranty  of  the  state  of  things  established 
by  the  treaty  of  peace." 

This  ultimatum  had  as  corollary  the  following  lines 
dictated  by  the  Emperor  Francis  to  his  Minister: 
"  I  expect  a  yes  or  no  in  the  course  of  the  10th.  I 
am  determined  to  declare  on  the  llth,  as  will  be  done 
by  Russia  and  Prussia,  that  the  Congress  is  dissolved, 
and  then  I  shall  not  take  into  account  these  condi- 
tions, which  shall  be  decided  by  war." 

The  Austrian  ultimatum,  which  was  communicated 
to  the  Duke  of  Vicenza  August  8,  was  not  placed 
before  Napoleon  until  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of 
the  9th.  At  the  same  time  the  Emperor  received  a 
letter,  in  which  the  Duke  of  Vicenza  said  to  him: 
"  Your  Majesty  will  observe  in  the  ultimatum  of  the 
Emperor  of  Austria  a  few  sacrifices  of  his  pride ;  but 
France  is  not  asked  to  make  any  real  ones  ;  no  diminu- 
tion of  your  real  glory  is  demanded.  I  pray  you,  Sire, 


THE   LAST   FESTIVITIES.  241 

to  put  into  the  scales  with  peace  all  the  chances  of  war. 
Consider  the  general  irritation,  the  state  in  which 
Germany  will  be  as  soon  as  Austria  shall  have  spoken ; 
the  lassitude  of  France,  its  noble  devotion,  and  its  sac- 
rifices after  the  Russian  disasters;  listen  to  all  the 
prayers  uttered  in  France  for  peace ;  to  those  of  your 
devoted  servants,  true  Frenchmen,  who,  like  me,  are 
forced  to  tell  you  that  it  is  necessary  to  allay  the 
feverishness  of  Europe,  to  loosen  this  coalition  by 
peace ;  and,  whatever  may  be  your  projects,  to  await 
in  the  future  what  the  greatest  successes  cannot  give 
you  to-day.  Such  a  peace,  made  after  our  army  has 
recovered  its  honor  in  several  battles,  can  only  be  an 
honorable  one.  After  so  much  time  has  been  lost, 
the  hours  are  numbered ;  one  of  the  objects  of  this 
letter  is  to  remind  Your  Majesty  of  this.  There  are 
too  many  passions  urging  war  to  allow  of  any  delay 
in  making  peace.  I  repeat  it,  because  such  is  my 
strong  conviction ;  may  Your  Majesty  thus  decide ; 
and  be  sure  that  in  speaking  to  him  as  I  do,  I  think 
less  of  the  honor  of  signing  it,  than  of  the  happiness 
of  my  country,  and  of  that  which  Your  Majesty  will 
find  in  the  certainty  of  having  done  something  wise 
in  policy,  and  worthy  of  his  'great  character." 

Austria  left  Napoleon  only  forty-eight  hours  to 
receive  its  ultimatum,  to  consider  it,  and  to  decide. 
If  he  accepted,  it  had  to  be  done  at  once,  and  he  had 
no  opportunity  to  alter  a  single  word.  At  the  most, 
he  had  still  time  enough  to  accept  everything  and  to 
send  word  to  his  plenipotentiaries.  But  he  made  the 


242  MARIE    LOUISE. 


mistake  of  supposing,  in  spite  of  what  Metternich 
said,  that  August  10  was  not  an  absolutely  final 
date,  and  that  negotiations  might  be  still  prolonged 
to  the  17th,  the  day  set  for  the  resumption  of  hostil- 
ities. Hence  he  thought  it  possible  to  send  a  prop- 
osition of  his  own  to  Prague.  According  to  this, 
Dantzic  was  to  become  a  free  city;  the  King  of 
Saxony  be  indemnified  by  territorial  concessions  for 
the  loss  of  the  Grand  Duchy  of  Warsaw;  Austria 
should  acquire  Illyria,  but  neither  Istria  nor  Trieste ; 
the  King  of  Denmark  should  have  the  integrity  of 
his  states  guaranteed ;  Napoleon  was  to  continue  to 
hold  the  Hanseatic  cities  and  the  Protectorate  of  the 
Confederation  of  the  Rhine.  The  day  and  night  of 
August  9  wQre  devoted  to  the  preparation  and  draw- 
ing up  of  this  document  which  could  not  be  sent  off 
till  too  late,  that  is  to  say  till  the  night  of  August 
10. 

This  decisive  and  fatal  10th  of  August  was  a 
holiday.  In  all  Germany  from  the  North  Sea  to  the 
frontiers  of  Bohemia,  the  French  army  was  noisily 
celebrating  the  Emperor's  birthday  a  few  days  in 
advance,  Napoleon  having  preferred  the  earlier  date, 
the  10th,  instead  of  the  15th,  in  view  of  the  resump- 
tion of  hostilities  on  the  17th,  lest  the  rejoicings 
should  be  too  near  the  approaching  bloodshed.  The 
15th  would  be  taken  up  with  thoughts  of  battles; 
the  10th  was  to  be  devoted  to  the  enjoyment  of  life, 
—  that  life  which  so  many  brave  men  were  soon  to 
lose.  Away  with  gloomy  forebodings !  Everything 


THE    LAST    FESTIVITIES.  248 

was  alive  with  joy  and  merry-making.  In  every 
camp  there  were  banquets  in  honor  of  Napoleon,  and 
paid  for  by  him.  He  dined  with  the  marshals ;  the 
soldiers  feasted  together  at  tables  set  in  the  open 
air.  They  pledged  France  and  the  Emperor,  drink- 
ing their  glasses  merrily,  forgetful  of  dangers  past, 
indifferent  to  those  before  them.  Never  had  the 
soldiers  been  more  confident  of  their  invincibility. 
The  conscripts  who  had  left  their  villages  but  a  few 
weeks  before,  already  had  the  air  of  veterans.  At 
Hamburg,  Marshal  Davout  gave  a  dinner  at  which 
the  Prince  of  Hesse,  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
Danish  troops,  was  present,  and  in  the  evening  there 
were  fire-works  in  the  Alster  basin. 

While  the  whole  army  was  revelling,  one  brave 
soldier,  a  skilled  diplomatist  and  great  patriot, 
General  Caulaincourt,  the  Duke  of  Vicenza,  that 
sturdy  hero  who  had  never  known  fear  on  any  battle- 
field, was  trembling  with  anxiety.  He  had  told  the 
truth  to  his  master  with  the  noblest  frankness.  See- 
ing the  gulf  open  before  him,  he  awaited  with  pain- 
ful anxiety  the  despatch  which  might  yet  save 
everything.  But  the  hours  passed  and  nothing  came. 
The  day  was  terrible,  but  the  night  was  still  worse. 
Nine  o'clock,  ten  o'clock,  eleven  o'clock,  not  a  word ! 
The  fatal  hour  drew  near.  The  old  clocks  of 
Prague  struck  twelve.  Metternich  had  not  deceived 
Napoleon ;  he  had  always  told  him  that  at  midnight 
the  die  would  be  cast.  The  Russians  and  Prussians 
were  sighing  for  that  hour  which  in  their  thought 


244  MARIE   LOUISE. 


would  be  that  of  the  deliverance  of  Europe.  Up  to 
the  last  minute  they  had  feared  a  reconciliation  be- 
tween the  son-in-law  and  the  father-in-law.  They 
knew  that  without  Austria  they  were  powerless,  and 
with  Austria,  capable  of  everything.  It  struck  mid- 
night :  they  did  not  lose  a  minute  in  announcing  the 
rupture  of  the  armistice.  Fires,  the  agreed  signals, 
were  lit  on  mountains  between  Prague  and  Trachen- 
berg.  The  Russian  army,  under  the  command  of 
Barclay  de  Tolly,  broke  camp  and  entered  Bohemia. 
It  was  not  till  the  morning  of  August  11  that  the 
Duke  of  Vicenza  was  able  to  communicate  to  Metter- 
nich  Napoleon's  propositions.  This  tardy  step  was 
without  success,  although  the  Austrian  Minister  gave 
a  faint  hope  that  there  might  be  a  direct  arrangement 
with  the  Emperor  Alexander  who  was  to  be  at  Prague 
August  15.  The  Duke  of  Vicenza,  uncertain  whether 
he  ought  to  stay  or  leave,  asked  on  the  llth  for  new 
instructions,  and  particularly  for  full  powers.  He 
declared,  however,  that  Austria  would  not  yield  in 
the  matter  of  Trieste  or  the  Hanseatic  cities,  or  of 
the  territorial  indemnity  asked  for  Saxony.  He 
wrote  on  the  12th  that  if  the  Emperor  Napoleon 
would  not  insist  on  these  three  points,  matters  were 
not  yet  desperate.  The  Emperor  received  this  de- 
spatch on  the  13th,  and  on  the  same  day  the  Duke  of 
Bassano  wrote  at  his  dictation  to  the  Duke  of  Vicenza : 
"  We  refuse  Trieste,  because  Trieste  is  Istria,  and 
for  us  Istria  does  not  mean  Istria  but  Venice.  It  is 
a  matter  of  honor  for  France  to  require  suitable 


THE   LAST   FESTIVITIES.  245 

indemnities  for  the  King  of  Saxony.  We  demand 
that  nothing  shall  be  said  about  Hamburg  or  Liibeck. 
You  may  request  communication  to  M.  de  Metternich 
of  His  Majesty's  ultimatum.  We  send  you  the  nec- 
essary powers  for  signing  everything  within  two 
hours.  .  .  .  As  soon  as  you  are  sure  that  there 
remains  no  possibility  of  agreement,  you  will  depart 
at  once ;  His  Majesty  is  unwilling  that  you  should 
remain  to  grace  the  Emperor  Alexander's  triumph 
at  Prague.  You  will  leave  the  city  before  his  arrival. 
Moreover,  His  Majesty  is  determined  not  to  lend  his 
aid  to  the  prolongation  of  the  armistice,  and  he  is 
quite  as  anxious  for  war  as  is  Austria.  He  desires 
that  you  start  from  the  principle  that  we  are  not 
sorry  that  this  power  should  be  in  a  state  of  war  with 
us.  The  secret  joy  that  His  Majesty  feels  in  a  situa- 
tion worthy  of  his  genius,  has  not  escaped  the  per- 
ception of  M.  de  Bubna.  He  knows  that  we  have 
on  our  side  the  advantage  given  by  possessing  all  the 
pieces  on  the  board.  He  recognizes,  with  all  Europe, 
that  we  have  all  the  power  of  genius.  His  Majesty, 
trusting  in  Providence,  sees  the  vast  designs  it  en- 
trusts to  him.  He  sees  about  him  only  grounds  for 
confidence." 

On  the  receipt  of  this  despatch,  monumental  proof 
of  that  spirit  of  imprudence  and  error  of  which  the 
poet  speaks,  the  Duke  of  Vicenza  was  seized  with 
deep  melancholy.  He  wrote  at  once  to  the  Duke 
of  Bassano :  "  I  confess  that  I  had  hoped  for  greater 
freedom ;  when  one  desires  anything,  one  must  desire 


246  MARIE    LOUISE. 


also  the  means  of  doing  it ;  I  hope  for  another 
despatch  to-night;  if  I  have  no  other  reason  to  go 
to  M.  de  Metternich  I  have  but  faint  hopes ;  I  shall 
have  all  the  inconvenience,  and  yet  shall  not  be  at 
fault.  How  many  tears  to-morrow  may  wipe  away 
or  call  forth  !  " 

The  Duke  of  Vicenza,  whose  patriotic  anguish  was 
at  its  height,  wished  to  make  one  final  appeal  to  his 
master,  and  in  the  night  of  August  15  he  wrote  to 
him  this  eloquent  letter :  "  Weigh  well  in  the  balance, 
Sire,  the  real  interests  of  France,  those  of  your 
dynasty,  those  finally  of  a  wise  policy.  Throw  these 
into  the  same  scales  with  the  glory  of  war  and  its 
chances,  and  Your  Majesty  will  make  peace.  Deign  to 
persuade  yourself,  Sire,  that  this  war  is  not  like  those 
that  have  preceded  it.  Every  one  has  seen  the  faults, 
and,  what  is  more,  has  calculated  the  risks  of  the 
course  he  has  taken.  Austria  has  not  prepared  for 
the  removal  of  its  archives  from  Vienna,  and  made 
other  preparations,  without  foreseeing  reverses  in 
this  general  conflict.  Russia  runs  no  further  risk, 
fighting  as  she  does  in  the  territory  of  others.  Prus- 
sia is  engaged  in  a  life  or  death  struggle  in  spite  of 
herself.  As  for  Germany,  it  will  follow  Austria, 
which  feels  only  too  well  that  its  cause  will  be  with- 
out appeal  if  the  signal  is  once  given.  England 
defends  herself  in  Spain ;  but  when  the  first  cannon 
is  fired,  she  will  command  everywhere,  and  Your 
Majesty  will  not  be  everywhere.  If  your  armies 
meet  with  the  slightest  defeat,  if  even  the  battles, 


THE   LAST    FESTIVITIES.  247 

like  the  last  ones,  are  without  great  results,  who  can 
foresee  the  consequences  of  this  general  reaction 
and  assign  a  limit  to  this  coalition  ? 

"  Confound  your  enemies,  Sire,  frustrate  their 
plans,  make  peace,  if  only  to  let  the  storm  pass  by. 
This  will  calm  them,  and  prevent  their  using  the 
same  means  to  excite  enthusiasm.  No  sacrifice  is 
asked  of  French  honor,  because  nothing  is  asked  of 
France.  .  .  .  France  and  the  world  ask  peace  of 
you.  The  peace  which  is  proposed  to  you  will  be 
of  more  service  to  you  than  the  happiest  war.  Deign, 
Sire,  to  listen  to  this  prayer  for  peace,  and  permit  a 
good  Frenchman,  a  man  who  loves  your  true  glory 
as  much  as  his  country,  to  present  it  to  you." 

Whether  it  was  that  these  noble  words  had  touched 
Napoleon's  heart,  or  that  he  wished  to  assume  an  air 
of  moderation  because  he  knew  that  Prussia  and 
Austria  would  not  accept  his  last  offer,  the  Emperor 
sent  to  the  Duke  of  Vicenza  full  powers  with  a 
despatch  conceding  all  Austria's  demands.  This 
despatch  reached  Prague  August  15,  at  one  in  the 
morning.  Five  days  sooner,  it  would  have  saved 
everything.  The  15th,  Metternich  said  to  the  Duke 
of  Yicenza,  "  The  propositions  made  by  France  to-day 
would  have  made  peace  on  the  10th,  because  then 
Austria  would  have  used  all  the  force  of  its  authority 
against  the  allies,  if  they  had  not  accepted  them.  I 
repeat  it,  the  10th,  the  Emperor  Napoleon  might  have 
given  the  world  peace.  .  .  .  To-day  we  have  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  thousand  Russians  among  us,  and  we 


248  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


have  made  agreements  with  them.  The  Russians 
and  Prussians  have  made  a  treaty  with  Sweden.  We 
have  none  yet  with  those  two  powers,  and,  on  the 
10th,  we  had  none  with  any  one.  It  is  not  our  fault, 
if  you  were  unwilling  to  speak  when  we  asked  you 
so  to  do."  The  Austrian  Minister  promised  to  com- 
municate the  French  propositions  to  the  allies,  but 
without  any  illusion  as  to  the  possibility  of  agree- 
ment. The  same  day,  August  15,  the  Emperor  of 
Russia  entered  Prague,  and  the  Duke  of  Vicenza 
withdrew  to  the  castle  of  Konigsraal,  near  the  city. 
The  next  day  he  learned  that  the  Czar  and  the  King 
of  Prussia  had  rejected  the  conditions  proposed  by 
the  Emperor  Napoleon  as  inadmissible.  Negotiations 
were  definitely  broken  off,  and  war  was  to  decide 
everything. 

Meanwhile,  what  was  going  on  in  Paris?  The 
Emperor's  birthday  had  been  celebrated,  August 
15,  with  the  customary  festivities.  The  Empress- 
Regent,  preceded  and  followed  by  her  lady  of  honor, 
and  the  ladies  and  gentlemen  in  waiting,  went  to  the 
Throne  Room,  in  the  Tuileries.  The  Grand  Chamber- 
lain there  presented  the  Princes,  the  Cardinals,  the 
High  Officers  of  the  Crown,  the  Grand  Eagles  of  the 
Legion  of  Honor,  the  Princes  of  the  Confederation 
of  the  Rhine,  and  all  those  who  had  the  right  of 
admission.  The  Grand  Master  of  Ceremonies  then 
introduced  the  Diplomatic  Body  and  all  went  to  the 
chapel  to  hear  mass  and  the  singing  of  a  Te  Deum. 
Then  there  was  a  great  audience  in  the  Emperor's 


THE    LAST   FESTIVITIES.  249 

apartments,  and  in  the  evening  the  second  act  of  the 
Opera  Dido  was  given  in  the  palace  theatre.  After 
the  performance,  Marie  Louise  appeared  on  a  balcony, 
amid  the  applause  of  the  crowd,  and  listened  to  a 
concert  given  on  the  terrace  and  looked  at  some  fire- 
works which  were  set  off  in  the  Place  de  la  Concorde. 
The  Empress  spent  the  night  at  Saint  Cloud.  The 
populace,  who  had  no  idea  of  what  was  going  on  at 
Prague,  and  still  hoped  for  an  early  peace,  celebrated 
the  Emperor's  birthday  with  great  rejoicing ;  but  it 
was  for  the  last  time. 

August  25,  Marie  Louise's  birthday,  was  celebrated 
with  great  splendor.  Napoleon  had  wished  her  to  go 
to  Cherbourg  to  preside  at  the  opening  of  the  grand 
basin.  Her  journey  thither  was  one  succession  of  ova- 
tions. She  entered  Caen  August  24  amid  the  roar 
of  cannon  and  the  ringing  of  bells.  The  town  was 
decked  as  for  a  rustic  festival;  every  house  was 
adorned  with  leaves  and  garlands.  In  the  morning 
of  the  25th,  the  Empress  passed  beneath  a  triumphal 
arch  raised  at  the  crossing  of  the  roads  from  Paris  to 
Cherbourg,  and  from  Bordeaux  to  Rouen.  At  nine 
in  the  evening,  she  reached  Cherbourg.  The  next 
morning,  the  26th,  at  eleven  o'clock,  she  visited  the 
Port  Napoleon.  Fifty  young  girls,  dressed  in  white, 
threw  rose-leaves  beneath  her  feet ;  they  were  headed 
by  the  daughter  of  the  sub-prefect  of  Cherbourg. 
This  girl  gave  the  Empress  a  basket  containing 
several  pieces  of  lace  made  in  that  region,  and  re- 
cited some  verses  composed  for  the  occasion,  which 
all  her  companions  repeated  in  chorus. 


250  MARIE    LOUISE. 


The  Empress,  accompanied  by  the  Minister  of  the 
Navy,  went  down  into  the  basin,  to  admire  the  work 
before  the  waters  of  the  ocean  should  be  admitted  for 
all  time.  Meanwhile,  two  English  men-of-war  were 
tacking  to  and  fro  at  a  distance  of  about  four  leagues. 
The  new  moon  and  the  springtide  determined  the 
destruction  of  the  dam  for  the  next  day.  The  sailors 
and  a  great  number  of  workmen  were  employed  in 
making  three  openings  in  the  dam,  through  which 
the  water,  as  it  rose,  should  enter  the  basin.  The 
27th  more  than  forty  thousand  persons  filled  all  the 
neighboring  approaches,  and  crowded  the  elevations, 
whence,  as  from  the  rising  seats  of  an  amphitheatre, 
they  could  witness  the  whole  ceremony.  Near  the 
dam  there  had  been  set  up  a  pavilion  for  the  use  of 
the  Empress.  She  entered  it  at  six  in  the  evening, 
just  as  the  sea  began  to  enter  the  basin.  All  the 
cannon  on  the  platforms  about  the  Port  Napoleon 
were  set  off,  and  rapturous  applause  broke  out.  The 
Bishop  of  Constance,  with  all  his  clergy,  received 
the  Empress  with  an  address ;  then  turning  towards 
the  further  port,  he  recited  the  usual  prayers  and 
blessings.  The  sea  rose  majestically,  and  gradually 
filled  the  basin  through  the  three  openings.  At  nine 
in  the  evening  the  crash  occurred,  the  dam  gave  way 
with  a  loud  roar,  and  the  basin  was  filled  to  the  level 
of  the  sea. 

During  this  grand  festivity,  Marie  Louise  seemed 
depressed.  She  had  reached  Cherbourg  tired  by  the 
bad  roads  beyond  Carentan,  suffocated  by  the  dust, 


THE    LAST    FESTIVITIES.  251 

and  with  a  bad  cold  on  her  chest.  At  Cherbourg 
she  heard  of  the  resumption  of  hostilities.  The 
honors  that  met  her  were  no  consolation.  Septem- 
ber 5,  at  one  in  the  morning,  she  was  back  at  Saint 
Cloud,  and  the  memory  of  the  ovations  she  had 
received  had  not  dispelled  her  uneasiness  and  her 
gloom. 


XVII. 

THE   BESUMPTION   OF   HOSTILITIES. 

war  had  begun  again  under  formidable  con- 
JL  ditions.  At  the  very  moment  when  Marie 
Louise  was  presiding  at  the  inauguration  of  the 
basin  at  Cherbourg,  Napoleon  was  fighting  the  battle 
of  Dresden,  which  lasted  two  days,  August  26  and 
27,  1813.  After  the  first  day  he  returned  at  mid- 
night to  the  castle  of  the  King  of  Saxony,  and  spent 
the  whole  night  in  dictating  orders.  At  dawn  he 
got  on  his  horse  again  in  vile  weather;  rain  and 
blood  were  equally  abundant.  Moreau,  forgetful  of 
his  laurels  at  Hohenlinden,  had  just  taken  service  in 
the  Russian  army,  and  had  had  his  two  legs  carried 
away  by  the  side  of  the  Emperor  Alexander.  That 
evening  Napoleon  returned  victorious  to  Dresden, 
wet  to  the  skin,  as  if  he  had  fallen  into  the  river. 
The  King  of  Saxony,  his  staunch  ally,  kissed  him 
tenderly,  greeting  him  as  his  preserver.  The  bat- 
talion of  the  Guard,  who  had  surrounded  him  during 
the  battle,  and  had  escorted  him  to  the  Saxon  capital, 
was  under  arms  the  next  morning,  in  the  courtyard, 
in  as  good  trim  as  at  a  review  in  the  Place  du 
252 


THE  RESUMPTION    OF  HOSTILITIES.          253 

Carrousel.  These  brave  soldiers,  instead  of  resting 
after  all  their  fatigues  and  perils,  had  spent  the  night 
cleaning  and  drying  their  uniforms  about  large  fires. 
A  word  from  the  Emperor  was  their  reward. 

Marie  Louise  heard  of  the  victory  of  Dresden 
before  leaving  Cherbourg.  She  wrote  to  the  Baron 
of  Me'neval:  "My  health  would  be  excellent  were 
it  not  for  my  cough,  which  is  very  fatiguing ;  I  shall 
not  do  anything  for  it  until  I  get  back  to  Paris. 
Besides,  the  good  news  I  have  heard  to-day  does  me 
more  good  than  any  medicine.  I  hope  this  great  vic- 
tory will  soon  bring  back  the  Emperor  and,  with  him, 
peace." 

This  was  fortune's  last  smile.  Napoleon,  intoxi- 
cated with  his  success,  had  no  suspicion  of  the  disas- 
ters that  awaited  him.  The  allies  had  retreated  in 
disorder  through  all  the  roads  of  the  mountains, 
which  were  cumbered  with  wounded  and  baggage. 
The  conqueror,  Avho  had  them  pursued,  counted, 
for  the  completion  of  their  defeat,  on  General 
Vandamme's  army  corps,  while  he  himself,  by  the 
fatigues  and  exposure  of  the  battle,  was  compelled 
to  return  to  Dresden.  But  August  30,  at  Culm,  Gen- 
eral Vandamme  met  witli  defeat,  wherewith  began 
the  series  of  misfortunes  which  brought  about  the 
successive  defections  of  Bavaria,  Wiirtemberg,  of  all 
the  Princes  of  the  Confederation  of  the  Rhine,  and 
culminated  in  the  catastrophe  of  Leipsic. 

Napoleon  spent  the  whole  month  of  September  in 
nmnu'uvring  in  turn  against  the  Prussian  army  of 


254  MARIE    LOUISE. 


Silesia  and  against  the  Austrian  army  of  Bohemia, 
both  of  which  declined  battle.  If  he  advanced 
against  Bliicher,  the  Austrians  descended  into  Sax- 
ony; if  he  advanced  against  Schwarzenberg,  the 
Prussians  threatened  Dresden.  Meanwhile,  Wiir- 
temberg  was  in  open  insurrection ;  the  Cossacks  had 
captured  Cassel ;  the  Saxons  and  Wiirtembergers 
were  worked  upon  by  secret  societies,  and  the  King 
of  Bavaria,  under  the  compulsion  of  his  people,  gave 
notice  to  the  Emperor  that  he  should  be  obliged  to 
join  the  coalition.  "  My  star  grew  dim,"  said  Napo- 
leon, speaking  of  this  period  at  Saint  Helena ;  "  I 
felt  the  reins  slipping  through  my  fingers,  and  I  was 
powerless.  Nothing  but  a  miracle  could  have  saved 
us,  and  every  day  by  one  fatality  after  another  our 
chances  diminished.  Ill  will  began  to  appear  among 
us ;  fatigue  and  discouragement  overcame  the  major- 
ity; my  lieutenants  became  lax,  awkward,  careless, 
and  consequently  unsuccessful ;  they  were  no  longer 
the  men  of  the  beginning  of  the  Revolution,  nor  those 
of  my  successful  days.  The  superior  generals  were 
tired;  I  had  granted  them  too  much  respect,  too 
many  honors,  too  much  wealth.  They  had  tasted  the 
cup  of  pleasure,  and  were  anxious  for  ease  at  any 
price.  The  holy  fire  burned  dim." 

What  discouraged  all  thinking  men,  soldiers  as  well 
as  civilians,  was  the  entry  of  Austria  into  the  coali- 
tion. France  might  have  been  able  to  resist  all  its 
other  enemies  together;  but  to  fight  against  their 
armies  and  the  Austrian  armies  as  well,  was  too  much, 


THE    RESUMPTION    OF   HOSTILITIES.          255 

even  for  the  bravest  troops;  even  for  a  general  like 
Napoleon.  His  father-in-law  had  become  the  most 
dangerous  of  his  enemies,  and  yet,  even  when  at  war, 
he  wrote  to  him  in  the  most  courteous  way,  as  in  the 
happiest  days  of  the  alliance.  September  6, 1813,  the 
Emperor  Francis  replied  thus :  — 

"My  BROTHER  AND  VERY  DEAR  SON-IN-LAW:  I 
have  received  the  letter  which  Your  Imperial  Majesty 
wrote  to  me  August  29  last.  The  assurance  it  con- 
tains of  the  excellence  of  your  health  gives  me  the 
keenest  pleasure.  My  own  is  no  less  good,  and  I  take 
this  opportunity  to  beg  Your  Imperial  Majesty  to 
forward  to  my  daughter,  the  Empress,  the  enclosed 
letter,  which  I  cannot  entrust  to  better  hands  than 
those  of  Your  Imperial  Majesty.  I  beg  you  to 
receive  the  assurance  of  the  high  regard  and  of  the 
sincere  personal  attachment  which  I  invariably  feel 
for  you.  Your  Imperial  Majesty's  kind  brother  and 
father-in-law,  FRANCIS." 

A  sad  and  curious  contrast:  these  two  sovereigns 
styling  each  other  brothers,  congratulating  each  other 
on  their  good  health,  while  their  people  were  cutting 
one  another's  throats. 

"  Quidquid  delirant  reges,  plectuntur  Achivi." 

September  11, 1813,  between  the  battles  of  Dresden 
and  of  Leipsic,  Napoleon  wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Bas- 
sano :  "  The  desire  for  news  is  so  eager  in  Paris  that 
you  must  not  lose  a  moment  in  sending  it.  Make 
everything  as  moderate  as  possible,  and  admit  noth- 
ing personal  against  the  Emperor  or  Metternich." 


256  MARIE    LOUIS& 


Marie  Louise,  who  adored  her  father,  was  very  glad 
to  receive  a  letter  from  him.  "  I  cannot  tell  you," 
she  wrote  to  him,  September  23,  "what  happiness  I 
felt  when  I  found  your  letter  in  one  from  the  Em- 
peror. I  was  deeply  touched  by  this  attention.  I 
had  expected  not  to  hear  from  you  so  long  as  the  war 
lasted.  This  silence  was  very  painful  for  me.  .  .  . 
Every  day  I  pray  God  to  put  an  end  to  hostilities,  for 
then  I  should  be  calm,  and  my  feelings  would  no 
longer  be  divided.  .  .  .  The  Emperor  has  promised 
to  be  careful  to  forward  all  my  letters.  I  shall  write 
as  often  as  possible,  for  you  know,  dear  father,  that 
that  is  one  of  my  greatest  pleasures.  I  often  think 
of  you,  and  I  am  much  touched  by  your  satisfaction 
with  my  feelings.  You  see,  dear  father,  that  I  do 
my  best  to  follow  the  principles  I  have  learned  from 
your  example."  Marie  Louise  was  mistaken  when 
she  hoped  to  be  able  to  write  to  her  father;  she  was 
not  free  to  do  this  until  the  second  half  of  November. 

Meanwhile,  however,  the  Emperor  Francis  wrote 
again  to  his  son-in-law.  From  Toplitz,  September 
28,  1813,  he  wrote  to  him  this  letter :  - 

"My  BROTHER  AND  VERY  DEAR  SON-IN-LAW:  I 
have  received  Your  Imperial  Majesty's  letter  dated 
September  25.  Since  Zamosz  was  not  besieged  by 
my  troops,  I  could  not  interfere  with  the  terms  of 
surrender,  which  had  to  be  agreed  upon  by  the 
respective  commanders.  Your  Majesty  can  have  no 
doubt  of  my  desire  for  peace.  Out  of  my  reign  of 
twenty-one  years,  ten  have  been  lost  for  the  happiness 


THE    RESUMPTION    OF   HOSTILITIES.          257 

of  my  nation.  The  paper  which  the  Duke  of  Bassano 
sent  August  18  to  Count  Metternich  seems  to  prove 
that  Your  Majesty  shares  my  conviction,  which  is 
also  that  of  my  allies,  that  Europe  can  no  longer 
be  wholly  pacified,  and  that  it  would  be  better  to 
take  all  the  risks  of  the  present  war  than  to  bring  it 
to  an  end,  while  preserving  the  fear  of  new  and 
inevitable  disturbances.  Simultaneously  with  the  Em- 
peror of  Russia  and  the  King  of  Prussia,  I  have 
forwarded  to  England  Your  Majesty's  overtures.  I 
expect  shortly  the  answer  of  the  Prince-Regent,  and 
I  shall  speedly  communicate  it  to  Your  Imperial 
Majesty.  You  are  quite  right  in  mentioning  to  me, 
among  the  motives  that  make  peace  desirable,  the 
misfortunes  of  France.  The  welfare  of  the  country 
in  which  my  daughter  is  established  will  never  Jbe 
indifferent  to  me ;  and  doubtless  France  has,  no  less 
than  Austria  and  the  rest  of  Europe,  need  of  peace. 
If  Your  Majesty's  intentions  favor  conditions  which 
can  make  this  general,  France  will  owe  to  you  its 
happiness,  and  Europe  its  tranquillity.  Your  Imperial 
and  Royal  Majesty's  kind  brother  arid  father-in-law, 

"  FRANCIS." 

Thus,  then,  at  the  very  height  of  the  war,  the 
Emperor  of  Austria  manifested  regard  for  his  son-in- 
law,  and  addressed  him  in  almost  friendly  terms. 
We  are  convinced  that  at  this  moment  he  had  no 
thought  of  the  Bourbons,  and  that  the  idea  of 
dethroning  his  daughter  had  not  crossed  his  mind. 
Napoleon,  whose  chances  were  dwindling  from  day 


258  MARIE    LOUISE. 


to  day,  might  yet  have  saved  his  crown.  Doubtless 
the  integrity  of  his  vast  Empire  was  forever  compro- 
mised ;  but  yet,  we  think  he  could  have  saved  for 
France  its  natural  frontiers,  and  have  prevented  the 
soil  of  the  great  nation  from  being  profaned  by 
foreigners.  At  this  time  his  father-in-law  had  not 
become  his  irreconcilable  enemy. 

Marie  Louise  did  not  despair  of  a  reconciliation 
between  her  father,  whom  she  adored,  and  her  hus- 
band, to  whom  she  was  sincerely  attached.  It  would 
not  be  easy  to  suppose  that  the  German  ideas  and 
feelings,  in  which  she  had  been  brought  up  since  her 
tenderest  infancy,  had  not  left  traces.  But  these  she 
carefully  concealed  ;  and  possibly  she  did  not  confess 
to  herself  anything  like  sympathy  for  the  national 
movement  of  Germany;  at  any  rate,  she  discharged 
her  duties  as  Empress-Regent  in  the  most  irreproach- 
able way,  and  no  one  in  France,  or  elsewhere,  ever 
suspected  her  of  placing  filial  duty  above  her  duties 
as  wife  and  mother. 

It  was  Marie  Louise  herself  whom  Napoleon 
charged  with  making  a  solemn  appeal  to  French 
patriotism.  October  8,  1813,  she  went  in  a  great 
procession  to  the  Palace  of  the  Senate.  Preceded 
by  the  heralds  at  arms,  the  masters  of  ceremonies, 
the  councillors  of  state,  the  grand  eagles,  the  high 
officers  of  the  Empire,  the  Ministers,  the  ladies  of 
the  bed-chamber,  the  ladies  of  the  palace,  the 
Knight  of  Honor,  the  High  Chamberlain,  the  Grand 
Master  of  Ceremonies,  the  Princes  holding  high 


THE    RESUMPTION    OF   HOSTILITIES.          259 


positions,  she  drove  from  the  Tuileries  to  the  Luxem- 
bourg in  the  Coronation  carriage,  in  which  were 
also  the  Lady  of  Honor,  the  Duke  of  Conegliano, 
who  discharged  the  duties  of  Colonel  General,  and 
Count  Caffarelli,  the  Emperor's  aide,  Commander  of 
the  Guard.  The  equerries  were  on  horseback  about 
the  carriage ;  troops  escorted  her,  and  salutes  were 
fired.  The  high  officers  of  the  Senate  and  twenty- 
four  Senators  received  the  Empress  at  the  outer  door 
of  the  palace.  The  Empress,  after  resting  in  the 
apartments  arranged  for  her  reception,  went  to  the 
hall  where  the  Senate  met,  at  the  head  of  the 
procession.  At  her  arrival  all  the  Senators  rose. 
She  ascended  the  throne  which  was  to  the  left 
of  the  Emperor's.  One  step  lower  to  the  right  and 
left  of  the  throne  sat  on  chairs  the  Princes ;  to 
the  right  and  left,  on  the  steps,  the  Ministers  and 
High  Officers ;  before  and  behind  the  throne,  on 
stools,  sat  the  Chamberlain  and  the  Grand  Master  of 
Ceremonies.  Behind  Marie  Louise  stood  the  Lady 
of  Honor,  the  Duke  of  Conegliano,  Count  Caffarelli, 
the  Knight  of  Honor,  the  First  Equerry,  the  Lady  of 
the  Bed-chamber,  the  ladies  of  the  palace,  the 
Chamberlain  and  the  equerries,  the  Master  of  Cere- 
monies ;  a  little  lower,  the  assistant  masters  of 
ceremonies,  and  the  pages  seated  on  the  steps  of  the 
throne. 

Amid  a  solemn  silence  the  Empress-Regent  read 
the  following  speech :  "  Senators :  The  principal 
powers  of  Europe,  disgusted  with  the  claims  of 


260  MARIE    LOUISE. 


England,  joined  last  year  their  armies  with  ours,  to 
secure  the  peace  of  the  world  and  the  re-establish- 
ment of  national  rights.  At  the  first  chances  of  war 
slumbering  passions  awoke.  England  and  Russia 
have  drawn  Prussia  and  Austria  to  their  side.  Our 
enemies  desire  to  destroy  our  allies,  to  punish  them 
for  their  fidelity.  They  wish  to  carry  the  war  into 
our  beautiful  country  to  avenge  the  triumphs  which 
bore  our  victorious  eagles  to  the  heart  of  their  coun- 
tries. I  know  better  than  any  one,  what  our  people 
would  have  to  fear  if  they  ever  let  themselves  be  con- 
quered. Before  ascending  the  throne,  to  which  I  was 
called  by  the  choice  of  my  august  spouse,  and  by  my 
father's  wishes,  I  had  the  highest  opinion  of  the  cour- 
age and  energy  of  this  great  people.  This  opinion 
has  been  daily  strengthened  by  everything  that  I 
have  seen.  Sharing  for  four  years  my  husband's 
most  intimate  thoughts,  I  know  by  what  emotions  he 
would  be  torn  on  a  throne,  disgraced,  wearing  a  dis- 
honored crown.  Frenchmen,  your  Emperor,  your 
country,  your  honor  appeal  to  you ! " 

As  soon  as  the  Empress  had  stopped,  warm  ap- 
plause broke  out.  Then  the  Count  of  Lacie'pMe  arose 
and  said :  "  Madame :  Before  proposing  to  the  Senate 
measures  regarding  the  decree  of  the  Senate,  I  have 
the  honor  of  begging  Your  Imperial  Majesty  to  deign 
to  allow  me  to  offer  her,  in  the  name  of  my  col- 
leagues, the  respectful  homage  of  all  the  feelings 
with  which  we  are  inspired  by  seeing  Your  Majesty 
preside  over  the  Senate,  and  by  hearing  the  memor- 


THE   RESUMPTION    OF   HOSTILITIES.          261 

able  words  she  has  spoken  from  the  throne.  With 
what  gratitude,  with  what  pious  care  we  shall  ever 
guard  their  memory ! " 

The  Archchancellor  then  received  the  Empress's 
orders  before  giving  the  floor  to  the  Minister  of  War, 
and  to  Count  Regnaud  who  presented  the  outline  of 
a  decree  of  the  Senate  proposing  a  draft  of  two  hun- 
dred and  eighty  thousand  men,  one  hundred  and 
twenty  thousand  of  the  classes  of  1814  and  previous 
years,  in  the  departments  which  had  not  contributed 
to  the  last  draft  of  thirty  thousand  men,  and  one  hun- 
dred and  sixty  thousand  of  the  conscription  of  1815. 
Then  the  Empress  returned  to  the  Tuileries  in  great 
pomp. 

In  official  circles  every  means  was  tried  to  kindle 
enthusiasm.  October  17,  after  mass,  Marie  Louise 
gave  an  audience,  in  the  Hall  of  Mars,  at  the  Palace 
of  Saint  Cloud,  to  the  Municipal  Council  of  Paris. 
The  Prefect  of  the  Seine  read  the  following  address : 
"  Madame  :  What  Frenchman  can  remain  deaf  to  the 
voice  of  the  Emperor,  to  the  appeal  of  his  country, 
and  of  honor  ?  The  appeal  which  Your  Majesty  has 
just  made  has  found  an  echo  in  every  heart;  the 
need  is  felt  of  manifesting  those  generous  sentiments 
which  in  all  time  have  been  the  proudest  possession 
of  France.  This  esteem  which  Your  Majesty  had 
long  since  conceived  for  this  great  people,  the  love 
she  feels  for  it,  the  hopes  to  which  she  has  given 
birth,  will  not  be  deceived ;  the  august  daughter  of 
Maria  Theresa  cannot  summon  in  vain  the  courage 


262  MARIE    LOUISE. 


and  energy  of  her  people ;  the  French  will  have  no 
rivals  in  their  love  for  their  Sovereigns;  they  will 
count  no  sacrifices,  no  efforts  when  honor  commands ; 
they  cannot  live  without  glory,  and  their  Emperor's 
crown  shall  never  be  despoiled  of  a  single  laurel. 
This  is  the  unanimous  oath  sworn  to  to-day  through- 
out the  Empire ;  these  are  the  feelings  which  the 
good  city  of  Paris  expresses,  in  laying  at  Your 
Majesty's  feet  the  tribute  of  its  respect  and  devotion. 
Madame,  it  is  by  redoubling  their  zeal  and  affection,  it 
is  by  turning  their  eyes  to  this  august  throne,  to 
which  Your  Majesty  has  brought  with  every  virtue, 
the  noble  courage  of  her  ancestress,  that  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  good  city  of  Paris  are  inspired  as  faith- 
ful subjects,  with  all  that  they  owe  to  their  Prince 
and  to  their  country." 

While  Marie  Louise  was  thus  receiving  the  protes- 
tations of  devotion  which,  in  less  than  a  year,  were 
to  be  repeated,  not  to  her,  but  to  the  Bourbons,  the 
Emperor  was  fighting  the  bloodiest  battle  of  modern 
times,  which  the  Germans  call  the  Battle  of  Nations, 
—  the  battle  of  Leipsic.  It  was  fought  from  the  16th 
to  the  18th  of  October.  Napoleon's  army,  consisting 
of  one  hundred  and  forty  thousand  men,  contended 
heroically  with  a  hostile  force  of  three  hundred  thou- 
sand men.  In  the  centre,  and  to  the  right,  it  main- 
tained its  position  ;  but  on  the  left  treachery  made  it 
lose  ground.  There,  forty  thousand  men  were  crushed 
by  one  hundred  thousand  men  and  three  hundred  can- 
non, commanded  by  Bernadotte  —  the  former  Mar- 


THE    RESUMPTION    OF    HOSTILIT/I-:*.          263 

shal  of  France,  who,  with  the  Emperor's  permission, 
had  become  the  Crown  Prince  of  Sweden — when 
twelve  thousand  Saxons,  forming  nearly  a  third  of 
the  left,  ran  over  to  the  Russians,  entering  their  ranks, 
and  at  Bernadotte's  request,  discharged  their  artillery 
on  the  French,  their  fellow-soldiers  whom  they  had 
just  abandoned.  Night  put  a  stop  to  the  carnage. 
Napoleon  was  beaten. 

Retreat  was  imperative.  This  was  such  a  cruel 
blow  to  the  Emperor's  pride  that  he  was  nearly  pros- 
trated. An  enormous  mass  of  wounded,  cannons, 
baggage,  and  about  ninety  thousand  men,  still  under 
arms,  were  hemmed  in  against  the  city  of  Leipsic, 
between  two  rivers,  with  but  one  narrow  bridge,  be- 
yond which  ran  a  defile  half  a  league  long  across  deep 
marshes.  To  make  the  retreat  sure,  it  was  necessary 
to  make  many  bridges,  which  could  easily  have  been 
constructed  in  the  night  of  October  19.  Men  and  ma- 
terial were  abundant ;  but  Napoleon,  although  he  was 
told  that  a  vast  and  disorderly  throng  encumbered 
the  approaches  to  the  Elster  bridge,  took  no  precau- 
tions. At  noon  of  the  19th  he  went  to  bid  farewell 
to  his  unfortunate  ally,  the  King  of  Saxony,  who  was 
in  the  middle  of  the  city.  Meanwhile,  the  suburbs 
were  invaded  on  all  sides.  A  new  battle  began  on 
the  ramparts,  in  the  streets,  from  house  to  house. 
The  crowd  was  so  impenetrable  that  Napoleon,  after 
leaving  the  King  of  Saxony,  could  not  make  his  way 
out  of  Leipsic  through  the  Lindenau  gate.  Com- 
pelled to  retrace  his  steps,  he  went  around  the  city 


264  MARIE    LOUISE. 


along  the  boulevards,  and  thus  got  to  the  Elster 
bridge,  where  the  crowd  was  so  dense  that  his  escort 
could  only  make  their  way  through  by  violence.  As 
soon  as  he  had  crossed  the  bridge,  he  alighted,  and 
gave  orders  that  it  was  not  to  be  destroyed  till  after 
the  passage  of  the  army  corps  and  of  the  artillery 
guarding  the  approach  to  it. 

The  Elster  bridge  was  destined  to  be  as  fatal  as 
that  of  the  Beresina.  When  the  defection  of  the 
Baden  troops  gave  them  command  of  the  city,  the 
allies  hastened  to  the  bridge.  Then  the  French  sap- 
pers who  had  charge  of  blowing  it  up,  thought  the 
time  had  come,  and  fired  the  mine. 

The  French  rear-guard,  consisting  of  fifteen  thou- 
sand men,  almost  as  many  wounded,  and  with  an 
immense  quantity  of  wagons,  thus  saw  itself  cut  off 
from  the  rest  of  the  army  which  had  already  crossed, 
and  they  uttered  a  long,  despairing  cry.  It  was  a 
terrible  scene.  One  truly  brave  man,  whom  the 
Emperor  the  evening  before  had  made  marshal  for 
his  heroic  conduct,  Prince  Poniatowski,  plunged  on 
horseback  into  the  current  of  the  Elster,  to  gain  the 
other  bank.  He  was  drowned.  It  seemed  as  if  the 
fortune  of  France  and  of  Poland  sank  at  the  same 
time  beneath  the  wave.  The  glorious  death  of  the 
Polish  hero  made  a  deep  impression,  even  then  ;  when, 
after  such  fearful  slaughter,  after  a  battle  like  that  of 
Leipsic,  where  a  hundred  and  ten  thousand  men  were 
killed  or  wounded,  death  seemed  a  familiar  story.  A 
picture  of  Horace  Vernet's  and  a  song  of  Be*ranger's 


THE    RESUMPTION    OF   HOSTILITIES.          265 

have  combined  to  make  of  the  noble  victim  plunging 
into  the  fatal  waters  of  the  Elster  one  of  the  most 
famous  and  most  touching  of  legends. 

This  defeat  at  Leipsic  was  for  Napoleon  a  combi- 
nation of  grief  and  surprise.  Of  all  the  battles  he 
had  fought,  this  was  the  first  that  he  had  lost.  Up 
to  that  time  he  could  boast  that  if  he  had  been  con- 
quered by  the  elements,  he  had  never  been  conquered 
by  man;  and  now  he  was  to  know  for  himself  the 
sufferings  he  had  inflicted  on  others.  He  was  to 
learn  by  personal  experience  the  bitterness  of  defeat, 
the  anguish  of  retreat,  the  desperation  of  useless 
bloodshed.  War,  which  up  to  that  time  had  been  a 
source  of  gratification  to  his  unparalleled  pride,  now 
showed  to  him  its  horrors,  with  its  humiliations  and 
inexpressible  anguish.  The  hour  had  struck  when 
he  could  make  tardy  reflections  on  the  emptiness  of 
genius  and  glory,  on  the  intoxication  of  pride  that  had 
turned  his  head.  He  was  obliged  to  acknowledge  to 
himself  that  everything  that  his  true  friends,  Caulain- 
court,  Otto,  Narbonne,  and  many  others  had  told  him, 
was  perfectly  true.  In  his  own  heart,  he  knew  that 
his  boasted  infallibility  was  a  mere  idle  dream ;  that 
he  had  judged  men  and  circumstances  wrongly ; 
that  he  had  blundered  as  a  soldier  and  a  diplomatist ; 
that  at  the  Congress  of  Prague  he  had  done  wrong  to 
refuse  the  generous  conditions  offered  by  Austria; 
that  Metternich  had  predicted  to  him  at  Dresden 
what  had  just  happened  ;  that  every  needed  warning 
had  been  given  to  him  in  due  time,  and  that,  in  fact, 


266  MARIE    LOUISE. 


he  was  alone  to  blame.  For  a  character  as  proud  and 
impetuous  as  that  of  the  great  Emperor,  it  is  easy  to 
imagine  what  such  a  confession,  wrung  from  him  by 
the  course  of  events,  must  have  cost  him. 

At  certain  moments  the  fallen  giant  seemed  dazed 
and  stupefied,  unable  to  advance  or  to  draw  back. 
He  awaited  the  issue  with  a  sort  of  fatalism.  He 
exposed  himself  like  a  simple  soldier,  as  if  he  saw  in 
death  a  solution,  an  escape.  He  was  tortured  by  the 
thought  of  appearing  defeated  and  humiliated,  before 
his  wife,  his  Ministers,  and  the  Parisians.  It  seemed 
to  him  like  descent  from  the  capitol  to  the  potters' 
field.  So  accustomed  was  he  to  victories  and  ova- 
tions that  every  road  which  did  not  pass  under  a  tri- 
umphal arch  appeared  to  him  like  one  of  shame. 
Without  glory  he  could  not  breathe.  He  had  as  yet 
no  experience  of  misfortune.  He  had  so  long  been  the 
favorite  of  Fortune  that  he  was  perhaps  more  surprised 
than  grieved  by  finding  her  fickle.  This  struck  him 
as  something  abnormal,  inexplicable.  The  thought 
that  with  a  little  moderation  he  might  have  been 
spared  his  defeats,  and  that  by  giving  up  a  little,  he 
might  have  kept  everything,  distressed  him  beyond 
measure.  His  sole  consolation  was  to  say  that  he  had 
been  betrayed ;  but  every  one  had  predicted  to  him 
this  treachery  of  Germany,  of  its  diplomatists  and  its 
generals.  In  fact,  he  had  been  the  architect  of  his 
own  ruin. 

October  19  he  slept  at  the  mill  of  Lindenau,  where 
he  stopped,  utterly  worn  out,  and  was  sound  asleep 


THE    RESUMPTION    OF   HOSTILITIES.          267 

when  he  was  awakened  by  the  news  of  the  Elster 
disaster.  At  first  he  refused  to  believe  it,  but  when 
he  was  convinced  of  it,  he  had  to  continue  his  humil- 
iating retreat  without  delay.  On  his  way  he  saw 
once  more  the  battlefield  of  Liitzen  where  he  had 
gained  that  brilliant  but  barren  victory.  October  21 
he  passed,  silent  and  morose,  between  the  memories 
of  Rossbach  and  Auerstadt.  At  Erfurt,  the  23d,  he 
recalled  the  memorable  interview  of  1808.  Accord- 
ing to  General  de  Se*gur  it  was  noticed  that  while  he 
was  dictating  his  orders  he  turned  his  eyes  away 
from  the  place  where  he  had  seen  the  Emperor  Alex- 
ander bow  before  his  fortune,  proud  of  his  friend- 
ship, and  enthusiastic  over  his  glory.  The  retreat 
continued  amid  unceasing  obstacles.  The  troops,  in 
greater  and  greater  confusion,  were  harassed  by  hun- 
ger, fatigue,  and  sufferings  of  every  sort.  Napoleon 
narrowly  escaped  being  prevented  from  crossing  the 
Rhine.  At  the  pass  of  Hanau,  fifty  thousand  Aus- 
trians  and  Bavarians  blocked  his  path;  he  thought 
that  he  was  lost.  He  exposed  himself  recklessly  to 
the  shells  bursting  all  about  him,  refusing  to  seek 
shelter.  General  Drouot's  artillery  saved  him;  he 
hurled  the  enemy  back,  and  continued  his  journey. 
November  2  he  was  at  Mayence.  His  whole  army, 
now  reduced  to  sixty  thousand  men,  had  crossed  the 
Rhine. 

"  This  memorable  campaign,"  Napoleon  said  at 
Saint  Helena,  "  will  be  famous  as  the  triumph  of  the 
innate  courage  of  the  French  youth,  of  the  crafty 


268  MARIE    LOUISE. 


intrigues  of  English  diplomacy,  of  the  intelligence 
of  the  Russians,  of  the  shamelessness  of  the  Austrian 
Cabinet.  It  will  mark  the  period  of  the  disorgani- 
zation of  political  societies,  that  of  the  severance 
between  sovereigns  and  their  peoples,  and  finally  of 
the  decay  of  the  primary  military  virtues:  fidelity, 
loyalty,  honor.  .  .  .  What  is  very  remarkable  is 
that  the  kings,  the  soldiers,  and  the  people  had  in 
fact  nothing  to  do  with  these  infamies,  which  were 
the  work  of  a  few  military  intriguers  and  political 
desperadoes  who,  under  the  specious  pretext  of 
removing  the  stranger's  yoke  and  of  recovering 
national  independence,  simply  sold  and  delivered 
their  rulers  to  rival  and  covetous  cabinets.  It  was 
the  King  of  Saxony,  the  most  honest  man  that  ever 
wielded  a  sceptre,  who  was  robbed  of  half  his  prov- 
ince ;  it  was  the  King  of  Denmark,  so  true  to  his 
promises,  who  lost  his  crown.  Yet  that  is  the  return 
to  morality,  its  triumph  and  distributive  justice,  in 
this  world !  However,  I  take  pleasure  in  repeating 
for  the  honor  of  humanity,  and  even  of  thrones,  that 
amid  all  these  infamies,  there  were  also  unequalled 
virtues.  Not  for  a  moment  did  I  have  to  complain 
of  a  single  one  of  the  Princes,  my  allies.  The  good 
King  of  Saxony  remained  faithful  to  me  to  the  end ; 
the  King  of  Bavaria  loyally  sent  me  word  that  he 
was  no  longer  master;  the  King  of  Wiirtemberg's 
generosity  was  especially  remarkable.  The  Prince  of 
Baden  yielded  only  to  force,  and  at  the  last  moment. 
All,  I  must  say  in  justice,  gave  me  warning  in  time, 
in  order  that  I  might  make  ready  for  the  storm," 


THE    RESUMPTION    OF   HOSTILITIES.          269 

This  remark  of  Napoleon's  is  very  striking.  It  is 
certain  that  the  German  Princes  manifested  less  haste 
and  shamelessness  in  their  defection  than  did  the 
French  Senators. 

The  Princes  of  the  Confederation  of  the  Rhine  had 
been  anxious  to  keep  their  promises  to  the  Emperor, 
but  they  were  prevented  by  the  action  of  the  univer- 
sities and  by  the  popular  uprising.  "  To  the  fervor 
of  the  Tugendbund"  says  General  de  Se*gur,  " every- 
thing seemed  equally  honorable :  vile  spying,  heroic 
devotion,  perfidious  enticing,  sublime  poetry,  infamous 
treachery ;  it  inspired,  lifted  up,  ennobled  everything, 
and  with  glory  or  effrontery  assumed  every  form." 
Professor  Fichte  in  1813  was  lecturing  on  duty.  He 
closed  thus:  "The  course  will  be  suspended  until 
the  end  of  the  campaign.  We  shall  then  resume  it 
when  our  country  has  become  free  once  more^or  we 
shall  have  died  in  trying  to  regain  our  liberty."  A 
poet,  transforming  Queen  Louisa  of  Prussia  into  a 
symbolic  shade,  said  of  her :  "  How  sweetly  she 
sleeps  !  Ah !  may  you  sleep  until  the  day  when  the 
people  shall  wash  in  blood  the  rust  from  its  sword ! 
Awake  !  Be  the  angel  of  liberty  and  of  vengeance  !  " 
Kb'rner  composed  at  the  bivouac  the  hymn  of  the  Lyre 
and  the  Sword :  — 

"  The  Cavalier.  Tell  me,  my  good  sword,  sword  of  my  side, 
why  to-day  your  glance  is  so  bright  ?  You  look  at  me  with  the 
eye  of  love,  my  good  sword,  you  who  make  my  joy  ;  hurrah  ! 

"  The  Sword.  It  is  because  a  brave  soldier  carries  me :  that 
is  why  my  glance  is  bright ;  it  is  because  I  am  the  strength  of  a 
free  man,  that  I  am  joyous ;  hurrah  ! 


270  MAE  IE    LOUISE. 


"  The  Cavalier.  Yes,  iny  sword ;  yes,  I  am  a  free  man ;  and 
I  love  you  from  the  bottom  of  my  heart ;  I  love  you  like  my 
betrothed ;  I  love  you  like  a  dear  mistress. 

"  The  Sword.  And  I  have  given  myself  to  you.  To  you  I 
devote  my  life  and  my  soul  of  steel !  Ah !  if  we  are  betrothed, 
when  will  you  say  to  me,  '  Come,  come,  my  beloved  mistress  '  ?  " 

As  Chateaubriand  said :  "  The  man  whose  life  was 
a  dithyramb  in  action  fell  only  when  the  poets  of 
Germany  had  sung  and  drawn  their  sword  against 
their  rival,  Napoleon,  the  armed  poet." 

Alas !  what  is  more  lamentable  than  this  colossal 
struggle  in  which  such  a  vast  sum  of  heroism  was 
spent  on  both  sides,  and  so  many  brave  young  men, 
inspired  by  the  purest  and  noblest  sentiments  of  the 
human  heart,  succumbed  in  the  flower  of  youth,  at 
this  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century,  of  which 
they  should  have  been  the  ornament  and  the  honor ! 
A  German  cannot  withhold  his  admiration  for  these 
young  French  conscripts,  who  in  a  day  acquired  the 
intrepidity  of  the  sturdiest  veterans.  Frenchmen, 
too,  admire  the  young  German  students,  soldiers,  and 
poets,  who  so  bravely  left  their  universities  for  the 
camps.  Such  adversaries  were  made  to  esteem  and 
understand  one  another,  and  they  slew  one  another  ! 
Then  if  the  blood  that  was  shed  had  been  fertile,  if 
the  conquerors  had  become  free  !  But  no ;  the  sov- 
ereigns of  the  coalition  were  to  forget  the  victory 
once  gained,  the  liberal  promises  which  they  had  lav- 
ished, and,  in  a  word,  it  was  the  people  who  were  to 
suffer  for  their  kings  ! 


XVIII. 

THE   END   OF   1813. 

~Y~YTHEN  Napoleon  had  once  more  crossed  the 
V  V  Rhine  and  was  once  more  within  his  Empire, 
at  Mayence,  November  2,  1813,  he  suffered  from  a 
despondency  which  he  could  hardly  conceal.  This 
was  not  one  of  the  triumphant  returns  to  which  he 
had  accustomed  his  people.  The  hero  of  so  many 
battles  had  been  defeated  at  Leipsic.  He  dreaded 
meeting  his  young  wife,  in  whose  eyes  he  had  ceased 
to  be  the  incarnation  of  success.  Instead  of  hastening 
to  Saint  Cloud,  he  waited  six  days  at  Mayence,  leav- 
ing it  on  the  8th,  at  one  in  the  morning,  without 
sending  word  to  Marie  Louise  by  telegraph. 

The  same  day,  a  Sunday,  the  Empress  was  receiv- 
ing at  Saint  Cloud,  in  the  Hall  of  Mars,  after  mass, 
deputations  from  six  cities.  That  from  Antwerp 
said,  "  Your  good  city  of  Antwerp,  the  recipient  of 
so  many  favors  from  the  government,  would,  Madame, 
deem  itself  wranting  in  the  solemn  demands  of  grati- 
tude if  it  did  not  hasten  to  lay  before  the  throne  the 
expression  of  the  limitless  devotion  it  feels  for  Your 
Majesty."  The  deputation  from  Brussels  expressed 

271 


272  MARIE    LOUISE. 


itself  as  follows,  "  The  Belgians,  united  to  the  desti- 
nies of  this  illustrious  Empire,  have  not  forgotten  the 
wars  and  the  bloody  revolutions  to  which  their  weak- 
ness had  exposed  them.  They  know  that  they  would 
not  have  suffered  these  calamities  if  they  had  formed 
part  of  this  great  people.  We,  the  mouth-pieces  of 
your  good  city  of  Brussels,  come  to-day  to  assure 
Your  Majesty  that  she  will  always  find  them  ready 
to  shed  their  blood  to  preserve  for  the  French  name 
the  glory  it  owes  to  the  Emperor's  genius,  and  ready 
to  offer  their  fortunes  in  defence  of  the  Empire  against 
those  who  dare  to  threaten  it."  The  deputation  from 
Ghent  said,  "  Great  prodigies  ought  to  announce  a 
century,  that  posterity,  which  always  begins  early 
for  the  founders  of  empires,  already  calls  the  century 
of  Napoleon.  The  Belgian  provinces,  always  proud 
to  be  part  of  this  glorious  Empire,  hasten  to  outdo 
the  sacrifices  of  the  other  provinces.  The  good  city 
of  Ghent  which  boasts  of  having  been  the  birthplace 
of  Charles  V.,  one  of  the  most  illustrious  ancestors  of 
Your  Imperial  Majesty,  proudly  shows  these  glorious 
feelings."  The  deputation  from  Cologne  said,  "  The 
memorable  words  uttered  by  Your  Majesty  in  the 
Senate  have  deeply  touched  our  hearts,  and  have 
kindled  the  most  ardent  enthusiasm.  No,  the  coun- 
try's hopes  shall  not  be  deceived,  and  the  French 
shall  not  have  been  called  in  vain  to  conquer  the 
enemies  of  the  Empire,  the  enemies  of  peace.  Every 
citizen  will  fly  to  the  field  of  honor  and,  under  the 
banners  of  our  august  leader,  will  join  the  host  of 


THE    END    OF   1813.  273 

brave  men  who  fight  for  the  glory  and  for  the  peace 
of  the  world."  This,  even  at  the  end  of  1813,  was 
the  language  of  the  inhabitants  of  Belgium  and  of 
the  banks  of  the  Rhine.  Marie  Louise,  who  only 
knew  vaguely  of  the  recent  disasters,  was  still  sur- 
rounded by  courtiers  and  flatterers,  who  hid  the  truth 
from  her  and  promised  unflinching  devotion. 

Napoleon,  although  defeated,  could  not  make  up 
his  mind  to  abandon  the  airs  of  a  conqueror.  He 
wanted  his  return,  gloomy  as  it  was,  to  wear  a  glo- 
rious appearance.  The  eve  of  his  departure  from 
Mayence,  when  Marie  Louise  was  receiving  at  Saint 
Cloud  the  deputation  of  the  good  Belgian  and  Rhen- 
ish cities,  an  aide-de-camp  of  the  Prince  of  Neufch&tel 
reached  Paris  with  twenty  battle-flags  of  the  enemy 
which  Napoleon  sent  to  the  Empress.  The  arrival 
of  these  flags  had  already  been  announced  by  the 
Emperor  to  Marie  Louise  in  a  letter  from  Frankfort, 
dated  November  1,  1813.  It  ran  as  follows :  — 

"MADAME,   AND  MY  VERY   DEAR   WlFE:      I   send 

you  twenty  flags  captured  by  my  armies  at  the  bat- 
tles of  Wachau,  Leipsic,  and  Hanau.  This  is  a  mark 
of  respect  which  I  like  to  pay  to  you.  I  hope  you 
will  see  in  it  a  token  of  my  great  satisfaction  with  your 
conduct  during  the  regency  which  I  entrusted  to  you." 
Napoleon  was  anxious  that  the  Parisians  should 
learn  at  the  same  time  from  the  Moniteur  his  return 
and  the  reception  of  the  flags.  Defeated  or  victori- 
ous, he  always  understood  how  to  arrange  pictur- 
esquely the  events  of  his  career. 


274  MARIE    LOUISE. 


November  9,  at  five  in  the  afternoon,  Marie  Louise, 
who  was  quietly  installed  at  Saint  Cloud,  where  the 
utter  calm  presented  a  marked  contrast  to  the  distant 
rumors  of  war,  had  no  idea  of  the  moment  when  her 
husband  would  return,  when  suddenly  two  carriages 
were  heard  driving  into  the  courtyard.  It  was 
Napoleon  arriving.  He  had  already  ascended  the 
staircase  when  he  saw  his  wife  before  him.  He 
kissed  her  affectionately ;  she  burst  into  tears,  trem- 
bling with  emotion.  Then  the  little  King  of  Rome 
was  brought,  and  his  father  greeted  him  most  ten- 
derly. Every  one  was  moved  by  this  pathetic  spec- 
tacle. Napoleon  said  nothing  about  the  way  the 
campaign  had  turned  out,  and  had  not  a  word  of 
blame  for  his  father-in-law's  desertion. 

November  14  there  arrived  at  Paris  a  messenger 
from  the  allies,  bearing  an  important  communication ; 
a  peace  overture,  which,  in  our  opinion,  still  offered 
Napoleon  a  chance  of  safety.  It  was  the  Baron  of 
Saint  Aignan,  the  Emperor's  Equerry,  and  his  Minis- 
ter Plenipotentiary  at  Weimar.  At  the  entry  of  the 
allies  into  that  city,  M.  de  Saint  Aignan  had  at  first 
been  treated  like  a  prisoner  of  war  ;  but  then  he  was 
carried  to  Frankfort  where  all  the  principal  Ministers 
of  the  sovereigns  of  the  coalition  were  assembled,  and 
after  he  had  been  treated  with  the  utmost  respect,  he 
had  been  commissioned  to  carry  to  Napoleon  a  propo- 
sition leaving  to  France  its  natural  frontiers.  Was 
this  a  serious  proposition  or  a  feint?  Opinion  is 
divided  on  this  question.  "  Being  perfectly  familiar 


THE    END    OF    1813.  275 

with  the  state  of  mind  of  the  French  public,"  says 
Metternich  in  his  Memoirs,  "  I  was  convinced  that  to 
avoid  irritating  it,  to  offer  it  rather  an  allurement 
which  would  be  welcome  to  every  one,  it  was  better 
to  flatter  the  national  pride,  and  to  speak  of  the 
Rhine,  the  Alps,  and  the  Pyrenees  as  the  natural 
boundaries  of  France.  In  the  aim  of  still  more  isolat- 
ing Napoleon,  and  at  the  same  time  of  acting  on  the 
mind  of  the  army,  I  proposed  attaching  the  offer  of 
immediate  negotiations  to  the  idea  of  natural  bounda- 
ries. The  Emperor  Francis  having  approved  of  my 
project,  I  submitted  it  to  the  Emperor  of  Russia  and 
to  the  King  of  Prussia.  Both  feared  that  Napoleon, 
confiding  in  the  chances  of  the  future,  would  take 
some  prompt  and  energetic  resolution,  and  refuse  the 
proposition  in  order  thus  to  determine  the  situation. 
I  succeeded  in  inspiring  the  two  sovereigns  with  my 
own  conviction  that  Napoleon  would  never  volunta- 
rily adopt  this  course." 

The  Baron  of  Saint  Aignan  saw  the  Emperor  at 
Saint  Cloud,  November  15.  "  This  time  at  last," 
exclaimed  Napoleon,  "the  English  are  willing  to 
treat."  At  this  moment  the  Czar,  and  especially  the 
Emperor  of  Austria,  did  not  desire  the  return  of  the 
Bourbons.  France  still  overawed  the  allies.  They 
dared  cross  neither  the  Pyrenees  nor  the  Rhine. 
Ignorant  that  they  were  no  longer  faced  by  the 
France  of  1792,  full  of  ardor  and  enthusiasm,  but  a 
France  wearied,  exhausted,  and  discouraged,  they 
were  full  of  hesitation.  The  wisest  of  their  generals 


276  MARIE    LOUISE. 


said  that  a  peace  in  conformity  with  the  Frankfort 
propositions  would  be  for  the  sovereigns  of  the  coali- 
tion a  confirmation  at  once  honorable  and  prudent. 
What  strength  Napoleon  would  have  had,  if,  at  once 
acting  011  the  propositions  that  had  been  made  to  him 
he  had  accepted  them  unreservedly,  and  had  imme- 
diately convoked  the  Legislative  Body  to  announce 
the  good  news!  This  would  have  secured  for  him 
the  approval  of  public  opinion,  not  merely  in  France, 
but  in  all  Europe.  Instead  of  that,  what  did  he  do  ? 
He  replied  November  16,  but  his  answer  was  evasive. 
He  designated  Mannheim  as  the  place  for  the  meet- 
ing of  the  future  Congress,  but  he  threw  no  light  on 
the  propositions  that  had  been  made.  He  feared  to 
show  by  a  hasty  agreement  the  impotence  to  which 
he  was  reduced,  and  France,  even  with  its  natural 
frontiers,  seemed  too  narrow  for  him.  The  thought 
of  having  squandered  in  vain  so  many  human  lives 
beyond  the  Rhine,  the  Alps,  and  the  Pyrenees,  dis- 
turbed and  tormented  him  like  a  feebleness,  a  humil- 
iation, a  remorse.  He  thought  that  there  would 
always  be  time  enough  for  such  a  confession.  Hav- 
ing been  so  long  accustomed  to  be  the  master  over 
others,  this  haughty  sovereign  could  not  be  satisfied 
with  being  master  at  home.  Hence  he  let  slip  through 
his  fingers  the  last  moment  of  respite  that  fortune 
granted  him  before  leaving  him  forever  ;  and  when, 
December  2,  he  at  last  decided  to  accept  the  Frank- 
fort propositions,  the  allies,  who  had  learned  the  true 
state  of  affairs,  declined  to  grant  them.  Traitors 


THE    END    OF    1813.  277 

within  the  Empire  had  informed  them  of  the  royalist 
intrigues,  and  had  told  them  that  France,  divided 
against  itself,  must  surely  fall  their  prey.  Napoleon, 
when  he  opened  his  eyes  to  the  light  and  saw  the 
necessity  of  peace,  had  wished  to  confide  the  portfo- 
lio of  Foreign  Affairs  to  Prince  Talleyrand ;  but  he 
declined  it,  because  the  Emperor  wished  him  to  cease 
being  Vice-Grand  Elector  on  resuming  the  Ministry. 
It  was  then  by  means  of  this  petty  detail  of  etiquette 
that  a  combination  failed  which  might  have  altered 
many  things.  Desirous  of  giving  Europe,  and  espe- 
cially Russia,  a  pledge  of  peace,  Napoleon,  November 
20,  appointed  the  sagacious  and  peace-loving  Duke  of 
Vicenza  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs;  this  was  the 
man  who  had  already  given  him  many  good  counsels, 
and  he  was  highly  thought  of  by  the  Emperor  Alex- 
ander. But  it  was  too  late ;  as  at  the  Congress  of 
Prague,  he  had  let  the  opportunity  slip  by.  The 
time  for  diplomacy  had  ended ;  nothing  was  left  but 
a  final  appeal  to  arms.  This  terrible  catastrophe,  of 
which  no  one  had  thought  for  a  long  time,  so  improb- 
able did  it  seem,  the  invasion  so  terrible  for  a  conquer- 
ing race,  was  now  threatening. 

Marie  Louise,  anxious  and  tormented,  looked  for- 
ward to  the  future  with  gloom.  To  the  letter  she 
had  received  from  her  father  through  the  Baron  of 
Saint  Aignan,  she  replied :  "Heaven  grant  that  we 
may  soon  renew  our  intimate  and  regular  correspond- 
ence ;  it  would  be  a  symptom  of  peace  and  calm ;  it 
would  be  the  end  of  my  uneasiness.  You  cannot 


278  MARIE    LOUISE. 


imagine  how  much  I  am  distressed  by  the  thought 
that  you  and  my  husband  are  enemies,  while  you 
both  have  qualities  which  ought  to  bring  you  to- 
gether. The  Emperor  is  wonderfully  well.  I  found 
him  stouter  and  better  than  before  he  left  for  the 
war.  .  .  .  We  are  soon  going  into  the  city;  I  am 
sorry ;  for  the  air  of  Saint  Cloud  is  better  than  that 
of  Paris." 

The  etiquette  was  just  the  same ;  the  manners  of 
the  courtiers  continued  as  obsequious  as  ever;  yet 
the  Empress  detected  on  their  faces  signs  of  uneasi- 
ness. The  anniversary  of  the  coronation  and  of  the 
battle  of  Austerlitz  was  celebrated  for  the  last  time. 
Saturday,  December  4, 1813,  there  were  free  perform- 
ances in  all  the  Paris  theatres.  Sunday,  the  5th,  a 
Te  Deum  was  sung  at  Notre  Dame,  and  the  Parisians 
were  invited  to  illuminate  their  houses  in  the  even- 
ing. The  tragedy  of  Ninus  II.  was  given  the  same 
evening  in  the  theatre  at  the  Tuileries.  The  palace 
and  the  city  were  ablaze  with  countless  lights,  but 
they  contrasted  strikingly  with  the  deep  gloom  that 
possessed  nearly  every  one.  All  the  activity  of  the 
police  could  scarcely  prevent  the  expression  of  the 
general  discontent.  All  were  -unanimous  in  blaming 
Napoleon  for  not  making  peace  after  the  victories  of 
Liitzen  and  Bautzen.  He  was  criticised  as  much  as 
he  had  been  previously  praised.  The  officials  were 
dejected,  dispirited;  and  Marie  Louise,  alarmed  for 
herself,  for  her  husband,  for  her  son,  no  longer  spoke, 
but  was  always  in  tears. 


THE    END    OF    1813.  279 

December  19  Napoleon  opened  the  Legislative 
Body  in  person.  He  started  from  the  Tuileries  in 
great  pomp.  The  procession  passed  through  the  gar- 
den, the  Place  de  la  Concorde,  and  over  the  bridge. 
He  got  out  of  his  carriage  at  the  foot  of  the  steps, 
but  was  not  received  with  the  usual  enthusiastic 
applause.  The  Empress,  accompanied  by  Queen 
Hortense  and  surrounded  by  the  officers  of  her  house- 
hold, was  already  in  the  gallery,  opposite  her  hus- 
band's throne.  In  the  midst  of  a  stony  silence  he 
uttered  a  majestic  but  mournful  speech,  which  was 
more  likely  to  discourage  than  to  reassure  his  hearers. 
"Brilliant  victories,"  he  said,  "have  adorned  the 
French  arms  in  this  campaign;  unexampled  defec- 
tions have  rendered  these  victories  useless;  every- 
thing has  turned  against  us.  France  itself  would  be 
in  danger,  were  it  not  for  the  energy  and  the  har- 
mony of  the  French.  ...  I  have  never  lost  my 
head  in  prosperity,  adversity  would  find  me  superior 
to  its  assaults.  I  have  often  given  peace  to  nations 
that  had  lost  everything.  With  a  part  of  my  con- 
quests I  have  built  thrones  for  kings  who  have  aban- 
doned me.  I  had  conceived  and  carried  out  great 
designs  for  the  world's  prosperity !  .  .  .  As  monarch 
and  father,  I  feel  that  peace  adds  to  the  security  of 
thrones  as  well  as  to  that  of  families.  Negotiations 
have  begun  with  the  united  powers.  I  have  consented 
to  the  preliminary  propositions  which  they  presented. 
I  had  hoped  that  before  the  opening  of  your  session, 
the  Mannheim  Congress  would  have  assembled ;  but 


280  MARIE   LOUISE. 


new  delays,  for  which  France  is  not  to  blame,  have 
retarded  this  moment,  anxiously  expected  by  the 
whole  world."  Napoleon  closed  with  a  phrase 
which  was  only  too  frequent  in  his  speeches :  "  My 
people,"  he  said,  with  a  pride  unbroken  by  misfor- 
tune, "  cannot  fear  that  their  Emperor's  policy  will 
ever  betray  the  national  glory;  for  my  part,  I  am 
confident  that  the  French  will  ever  be  worthy  of 
themselves  and  of  me." 

Two  days  after  this  speech  was  uttered,  the  inva- 
sion began.  The  allies  crossed  the  Rhine,  December 
21,  between  Basle  and  Schaffhausen.  The  31st  the 
Army  of  Silesia,  commanded  by  Bliicher,  also  crossed 
it  between  Mannheim  and  Coblentz.  In  1814  hap- 
pened what  was  to  happen  in  1870 ;  for,  unfor- 
tunately, experience  is  vain.  France,  which  had 
thought  of  nothing  but  an  offensive  war,  was  totally 
unprepared  for  a  defensive.  The  idea  that  the  for- 
eigner could  pollute  the  soil  of  the  great  nation, — 
the  sacred  soil,  —  had  never  crossed  her  mind.  In 
1870  our  officers  had  all  the  maps  of  Germany;  none 
had  maps  of  France.  In  1814  the  fortresses  on  the 
Elbe  and  the  Vistula  had  been  thoroughly  equipped, 
but  no  one  had  thought  of  the  French  fortresses. 
Magdeburg  and  Hamburg  had  been  supplied  with 
what  should  have  been  at  Strasburg  and  Metz ; 
Alessandria  with  what  should  have  been  at  Grenoble. 

General  de  Se*gur  describes  the  beginning  of  the 
invasion  in  this  touching  passage  :  "  We  passed,"  he 
says,  "  through  the  citadel  of  Phalsbourg  as  easily  as 


THE    END    OF    1813.  281 

if  it  had  been  a  village  ;  not  a  gun  was  in  its  place  ; 
not  a  sentinel  was  to  be  seen ;  not  one  '  Who  goes 
there  ? '  stopped  us ;  as  if  there  had  been  no  ram- 
parts, gates,  or  garrison.  Enraged  by  this  indiffer- 
ence, I  bade  the  first  drummer  I  met  sound  the  alarm, 
announcing  the  enemy  which  was  pursuing  me.  The 
commander  at  last  woke  up  and  closed  the  gates. 
He  said  he  had  been  forgotten  by  the  Minister, 
and  had  received  no  orders ;  that  his  garrison  was 
insufficient,  without  food,  without  a  single  gun-car- 
riage in  proper  condition."  Then  speaking  of  the 
spirit  of  the  army,  the  brave  general  went  on  sadly  : 
"  What  had  become  of  the  joyous,  brilliant  animation 
of  our  sturdy  and  victorious  young  men?  What  a 
change  had  come  about !  Their  faces  marked  with 
wounds  and  vigils  now  appeared  grave  and  care- 
worn !  Their  once  calm  and  confident  brows  were 
now  bald,  or  their  hair  was  bleached,  not  by  age,  but 
by  the  fatigues  of  distant  wars;  and  all  were  now 
depressed  by  the  pain  of  seeing  our  country,  hitherto 
victorious,  threatened  in  its  turn  by  the  disgrace  and 
the  horrors  of  conquest !  There  was  the  same  differ- 
ence in  their  talk:  instead  of  merry  stories,  and 
voices  loud  with  confidence,  there  were  muttered 
phrases,  full  to  be  sure  of  jests,  but  these  were  forced, 
bitter,  derisive  even  of  ourselves,  as  if  anticipating 
those  of  the  enemy,  at  last  our  master,  and  ready 
doubtless  to  repay  with  usury  all  the  humiliations 
that  for  more  than  fourteen  years  we  had  inflicted  on 
them," 


282  MARIE   LOUISE. 


It  was  not  the  army  alone  that  suffered  from  this 
depression ;  all  France,  worn  out,  exhausted  by  con- 
scription and  taxes,  shared  the  same  feeling.  Never 
had  there  been  seen  so  many  mothers  in  mourning. 
Never  had  war  —  war  hated  by  mothers  (bella  matri- 
bus  detestata)  —  appeared  in  a  more  terrible  light. 
It  inspired  the  same  horror  as  the  guillotine  in  old 
times.  No  one  desired  it  more.  A  committee, 
consisting  of  Messrs.  Laine,  Raynouard,  Gallois, 
Flaugergues,  Maine  de  Biran,  had  been  appointed  to 
examine  the  diplomatic  documents. 

This  committee  felt  the  influence  of  public  opinion. 
"  Our  evils  are  at  their  height,"  exclaimed  M.  Ray- 
nouard; "the  country  is  threatened  at  every  fron- 
tier ;  commerce  is  extinct ;  industry  is  at  the  point  of 
death;  conscription  has  become  an  odious  blight;  a 
cruel  and  aimless  war  periodically  destroys  the  young 
men.  It  is  time  for  thrones  to  strengthen  themselves, 
and  for  France  to  escape  the  reproach  of  carrying 
everywhere  revolutionary  torches."  Napoleon,  impa- 
tient of  opposition,  was  very  indignant. 

"  Your  committee,"  he  said  to  the  deputies,  "  has 
been  guided  by  the  spirit  of  the  Girondists.  Instead 
of  assisting  me,  you  aid  the  stranger.  Instead  of 
uniting,  you  divide  us.  Is  this  the  moment  to  speak 
of  abuses,  when  two  hundred  thousand  Cossacks  are 
crossing  the  frontiers?  The  question  is  not  about 
individual  liberty  and  safety,  but  about  national  inde- 
pendence. Were  you  not  satisfied  with  the  Consti- 
tution? You  should  have  asked  for  another  four 


THE    END    OF   1813.  283 


years  ago.  .  .  .  And  in  whose  name  do  you  speak? 
I  alone  am  the  real  representative  of  the  people ; 
four  times  I  have  received  the  votes  of  five  millions 
of  citizens.  An  attack  on  me  is  an  attack  on  the 
nation ! " 

And,  December  31,  he  adjourned  the  Legislative 
Body  indefinitely.  The  previous  evening,  its  presi- 
dent, the  Duke  of  Massa,  had  communicated  to  the 
questors  this  letter :  — 

"  GENTLEMEN  :  The  Master  of  Ceremonies  on  duty 
has  the  honor  of  informing  you  that  Saturday  next, 
January  1,  at  midday,  His  Majesty  the  Emperor  and 
King  will  receive  in  the  Throne  Room,  in  the  Palace 
of  the  Tuileries,  the  congratulations  of  the  Legisla- 
tive Body.  Full  dress  will  be  worn.  After  this 
audience  the  Legislative  Body  will  betake  itself  to 
the  Diana  Gallery  to  meet  Her  Majesty  the  Empress 
as  she  passes  through,  and  to  pay  their  respects  to 
her." 


XIX. 

THE  BEGINNING   OF   1814. 

THE  Moniteur  of  January  2,  1814,  contained  the 
following  lines:  "To-day,  January  1,  before 
mass,  the  Emperor  being  in  the  Throne  Room,,  the 
Master  of  Ceremonies  on  duty,  assuming  the  func- 
tions of  the  Grand  Master  of  Ceremonies,  after  receiv- 
ing His  Majesty's  commands,  introduced  the  Senate, 
the  Council  of  State,  the  Legislative  Body,  the  Court 
of  Cassation,  and  the  Municipal  Council  of  Paris. 
These  different  bodies  were  led  by  a  Master  of 
Ceremonies  and  an  aide,  and  were  presented  to  His 
Majesty :  the  Senate  and  the  Legislative  Body  by  the 
Prince  Vice-Grand  Elector;  the  Court  of  Cassation 
and  the  Municipal  Council  -of  Paris  by  the  Prince 
Archchancellor  of  the  Empire.  On  leaving  the 
Throne  Room,  these  bodies  went  to  the  Diana  Gal- 
lery, to  form  in  line  for  the  Empress  to  pass  through, 
and  to  present  their  respects  to  Her  Majesty." 

The  Moniteur  made  no  mention  of  the  address,  at 

once  familiar  and  alarming,  with  which  the  Emperor 

had  received  them.     "  What  do  you  want  ?  "  he  burst 

forth,  assuming  a  fury  which,  in  fact,  he  did  not  feel, 

284 


THE    BEGINNING    OF   1814.  285 

for  he  was  perfectly  master  of  himself.  "  What  do 
you  want?  To  take  possession  of  the  power?  But 
what  would  you  do  with  it?  What  one  of  you  could 
exercise  it?  Have  you  forgotten  the  Constituent 
Assembly,  the  Legislative  Assembly,  the  Conven- 
tion? Should  you  be  any  more  fortunate  than  they? 
Would  not  all  of  you  perish  on  the  scaffold  like 
Guadet,  Vergniaud,  Dan  ton?  And  besides,  what 
does  France  need  at  this  moment?  Not  an  Assem- 
bly, not  orators,  but  a  general.  Is  there  one  among 
you  ?  And  then  where  is  your  commission  ?  France 
knows  me.  Does  it  know  you  ?  .  .  .  The  throne  is 
not  merely  a  combination  of  four  pieces  of  gilded 
wood,  covered  with  velvet.  The  throne  is  a  man, 
and  I  am  that  man,  with  my  will,  my  character,  and 
my  renown.  .  .  .  You  wanted  to  throw  mud  in  my 
face.  I  am,  you  must  know,  a  man  who  may  be 
killed,  but  who  cannot  be  insulted.  .  .  .  Besides,  I 
don't  defy  you  all.  Eleven-twelfths  of  you  are  good 
men;  but  they  let  themselves  be  led  by  mischief- 
makers.  Go  back  to  your  departments ,  tell  France 
that,  whatever  may  be  said,  it  is  against  her  that 
war  is  made  as  much  as  against  me,  and  that  she 
must  defend,  not  my  person,  but  her  own  national 
existence." 

When  he  had  returned  to  his  apartments  the  Em- 
peror summoned  the  Archchancellor  Cambace*res,  the 
Duke  of  Bassano,  and  the  Duke  of  Rovigo.  The  last- 
named  says  in  his  Memoirs  :  "  He  was  not  at  all 
angry  with  the  Legislative  Body ;  he  only  complained 


286  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


in  a  general  way  that  it  was  impossible  to  form  an 
Assembly  which  should  proceed  freely  in  the  same 
direction  as  the  government  which  it  always  looked 
on  as  an  enemy ;  and  he  pointed  out  that  it  was  while 
showing  the  best  intentions  that  King  Louis  XVI. 
had  been  gradually  led  to  the  scaffold." 

At  heart  the  Emperor  was  rather  •  saddened  than 
enraged.  "  I  need  two  months,"  he  said ;  "  if  I  had  had 
them,  the  enemy  would  not  have  crossed  the  Rhine. 
This  may  become  serious,  but  I  can  do  nothing  about 
it  alone.  If  I  receive  no  help,  I  shall  succumb.  Then 
they  will  see  whether  it  is  with  me  that  they  are 
angry."  When  the  Senators  who  were  sent  to  the 
various  provinces  as  extraordinary  commissioners,  to 
arouse  the  zeal  and  enthusiasm  of  the  populace,  came 
to  take  leave  of  him,  he  spoke  to  them  with  touching 
pathos,  laying  aside  his  pride  to  confess  his  faults  at 
last.  "  I  have  been  too  fond  of  war,"  Louis  XIV. 
had  said  on  his  deathbed.  "I  have  made  war  too 
much,"  said  Napoleon.  "  I  had  formed  vast  projects ; 
I  wished  to  secure  for  France  the  control  of  the  world. 
I  was  mistaken;  these  projects  were  not  in  propor- 
tion to  the  numerical  strength  of  the  population.  I 
must  expiate  the  mistake  of  relying  too  much  on  my 
good-fortune,  and  I  shall  expiate  it.  I  shall  make 
peace,  such  as  the  circumstances  command,  and  this 
peace  will  not  be  mortifying  for  me.  I,  who  made 
the  mistake,  must  suffer,  and  not  France.  She  has 
made  no  blunders  ;  she  has  lavished  her  blood  for 
me ;  she  has  refused  me  no  sacrifice.  Let  her  then 


THfi   BEGINNING    OF   IS  14.  287 

have  all  the  glory  of  my  undertakings  !  I  leave  it  to 
her.  As  for  me,  I  reserve  for  myself  the  honor  of 
showing  a  difficult  courage,  that  of  renouncing  the 
greatest  ambition  in  the  world." 

It  is  easy  to  understand  what  a  man  like  Napoleon 
must  have  suffered  in  making  such  avowals,  which, 
it  should  be  said,  were  not  made  public.  At  the 
Tuileries,  etiquette  went  on  as  smoothly  as  ever ;  but 
to  those  who  examined  it  closely,  it  was  evident  that 
the  machinery  was  only  moving  by  the  momentum 
it  had  acquired.  Like  France,  the  court  was  over- 
whelmed by  a  lassitude,  both  moral  and  physical. 
Enthusiasm  was  dead,  except  in  the  soul  of  some 
brave  veterans  and  fiery  youths  who  deserved  to 
fight  under  better  conditions.  In  vain  was  the  at- 
tempt made  to  rekindle  the  sacred  fire,  by  recalling 
the  enthusiasm  of  1792,  by  reviving  patriotic  songs, 
and  by  having  played  on  the  organs  in  the  streets  the 
air  of  the  Marseillaise,  to  which  had  been  adapted 
words  in  honor  of  Napoleon.  But  as  Count  Miot  de 
M  elite  says :  "  The  grand  ideas  of  liberty  and  equality 
which  had  moved  the  body  of  the  nation  were  extinct. 
The  affection  for  the  throne,  the  love  of  the  sovereign 
which  previously  filled  their  place,  did  not  exist  in 
behalf  of  a  recent  dynasty.  The  government  alone 
spoke,  and  there  was  no  response.  Languor  per- 
vaded every  heart;  the  conscription  had  exhausted 
the  strength  of  the  nation.  What  could  be  done  with 
such  elements?  Even  those  who  employed  them 
knew  the  general  powerlessness,  and  the  officials  sent 


288  MARIE    LOUISE. 

into  the  departments  could  not  inspire  a  confidence 
which  they  did  not  feel  themselves.  The  army  alone 
remained  devoted  and  faithful  to  its  leader ;  its 
defeats  had  not  affected  its  affection ;  but  the  gen- 
erals began  to  make  claims,  and  to  manifest  discon- 
tent." 

Napoleon  distrusted  his  brothers,  his  Ministers,  his 
generals.  He  had  a  foreboding  of  speedy  defections. 
Death  on  the  field  of  battle  did  not  seem  to  him  the 
worst  solution.  What  he  most  feared  was  the  humil- 
iation of  France.  The  thought  that  he  might  leave  it 
smaller  than  he  had  received  it  from  the  hands  of  the 
Directory  troubled  him  like  a  horrible  nightmare.  He 
could  not  think  of  it  for  fear  that  he  might  go  mad  with 
shame  and  grief.  He  suffered  cruelly ;  but,  respect- 
ing his  young  wife's  peace  of  mind,  he  kept  from  her 
all  his  mental  anguish.  He  avoided  speaking  to  her 
about  the  Emperor  Francis  and  Austria.  In  her  pres- 
ence, he  was  calm  and  majestic,  as  in  the  days  of  his 
supremacy.  He  even  tried  to  be  gentler,  more  atten- 
tive than  usual.  He  regarded  it  as  a  point  of  honor 
to  lose  no  jot  of  his  coolness  and  dignity.  As  Count 
Mollien,  Minister  of  the  Treasury  in  1814,  remarked, 
he  alone  did  not  change  when  everything  about  him 
changed ;  amid  the  many  ruins  which  foretold  his  own, 
he  continued  impassible,  trying  to  impress  others  with 
the  confidence  which  he  endeavored  to  assume  him- 
self. He  let  no  one  suspect  that  one  day  he  might 
be  abandoned  by  his  wife.  He  liked  to  have  others 
believe,  and  possibly  to  believe  himself,  that  she 


THE    BEGINNING     OF   1814.  289 

would  always  be  a  model  of  virtue  and  fidelity. 
He  proceeded  without  the  slightest  hesitation  to  in- 
vest her  with  the  duties  of  Regent.  Regarding  her 
as  forever  a  Frenchwoman,  he  preferred  her  to  his 
own  brothers,  and  treated  her  as  if  there  had  been 
no  change  in  the  Austrian  policy. 

For  her  part,  it  never  occurred  to  Marie  Louise  to 
distinguish  between  her  cause  and  her  husband's. 
She  was,  we  are  sure,  determined  to  perform  all  her 
duties  as  Empress,  wife,  mother,  and  to  observe  most 
scrupulously  the  oath  which  she  was  about  to  take 
as  Regent  to  the  Empire.  She  was  told,  besides, 
that  the  Duke  of  Vicenza  was  resuming  diplomatic 
negotiations  with  the  allies ;  that  the  Napoleonic 
dynasty  was  immovable  ;  that  France  would  certainly 
preserve  its  natural  frontiers ;  and  that  a  reconcilia- 
tion between  her  father  and  her  husband  was  immi- 
nent. This  hope  was  her  consolation. 

Marie  Louise  had  written  an  affectionate  and 
respectful  letter  to  the  Emperor  Francis,  to  send  him 
her  good  wishes  for  the  new  year;  to  which  he  at 
once  sent  the  following  answer :  — 

"  December  26, 1818.  DEAR  LOUISE  :  I  received 
yesterday  your  letter  of  December  12,  and  I  am  glad 
to  hear  that  you  are  well.  I  thank  you  for  your 
kind  wishes  for  the  new  year ;  they  are  very  precious 
to  me,  because  I  know  you.  I  send  you  mine  witli 
all  my  heart.  As  to  peace,  be  sure  that  I  desire  it 
no  less  than  you  do,  than  France  does,  and,  I  hope, 
than  your  husband  does.  In  peace  alone  can 


290  MARIE    LOUTM. 

ness  and  security  be  found.  My  views  are  moderate. 
I  desire  everything  that  can  make  peace  lasting  ;  but 
in  this  world  wishes  are  not  enough.  I  have  solemn 
duties  to  perform  with  respect  to  my  allies,  and 
unfortunately,  the  question  of  the  future  and,  I  hope, 
speedy  peace,  is  very  complicated.  Your  country  has 
turned  all  ideas  upside  down.  In  approaching  this 
question,  it  is  necessary  to  face  just  complaints  or 
prejudices.  Still  this  is  no  less  the  most  ardent  desire 
of  my  heart,  and  I  trust  that  soon  we  shall  be  able 
to  reconcile  our  nations.  In  England  there  is  no  ill 
will,  but  great  preparations  are  making.  Necessarily 
this  causes  some  delay  until  things  get  fairly  under 
way;  then,  please  God,  all  will  go  smoothly.  The 
news  you  send  me  of  your  son  gives  me  great 
pleasure.  Your  brothers  and  sisters  were,  at  last 
accounts,  very  well,  and  so  was  my  wife.  I,  too,  am 
in  good  health.  Believe  me  as  ever  your  loving 
father,  FRANCIS." 

At  the  beginning  of  1814  Marie  Louise,  who  heard 
much  more  talk  about  armaments  than  about  nego- 
tiations for  peace,  wrote  to  her  father  a  letter  which 
contained  this  sentence,  full  of  alarm :  "  Since  your 
troops  are  at  the  French  frontier,  the  whole  nation 
is  arming.  I  am  afraid  that  the  Emperor  will  leave 
soon  for  the  army,  and  will  leave  me  in  the  middle  of 
this  city,  which  is  preparing  for  the  combat."  Far 
from  her  husband,  the  young  Empress  was  to  feel 
lonely  and  anxious.  Her  principal  counsellor  was 
to  be  Joseph,  whom  she  scarcely  knew,  and  who,  in 


THE    JiEGTXNTyG    OF    18Uh  291 

deep  distress  at  losing  the  Spanish  crown,  had  only 
within  a  few  days  recovered  Napoleon's  good  graces. 

At  the  end  of  1813  Napoleon  was  on  bad  terms 
with  his  four  brothers.  His  quarrel  with  Lucien 
still  continued.  He  forbade  Jerome  to  come  to 
Paris,  and  the  unhappy  monarch,  inconsolable  for 
the  loss  of  his  Westphalian  kingdom,  was  wandering 
with  his  shadow  of  a  court,  from  Coblentz  to  Cologne, 
from  Cologne  to  Aix-la-Chapelle.  Louis's  heart  was 
full  of  bitterness,  and  though  he  submitted,  it  was 
only  conditionally.  "So  long  as  Holland  is  occu- 
pied by  the  enemy,"  he  wrote  to  Caulaincourt,  "  I  do 
not  claim  the  title  of  king,  and  it  is  a  matter  of 
indifference  to  me  whether  I  am  given  another.  I 
come  simply  as  a  Frenchman  to  share  the  dangers  of 
the  moment,  and  to  be  as  useful  as  I  can.  If  Hol- 
land falls  again  into  the  Emperor's  power,  and  he 
does  not  restore  it  to  me,  my  conscience  as  King 
would  prevent  my  remaining  in  France,  and  I  should 
again  depart.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  at  the  peace, 
Holland  should  be  ceded  to  any  other  monarch  than 
the  Emperor,  and  my  abdication  were  necessary  for 
sanctioning  the  treaty,  I  should  not  refuse  it." 

As  for  Joseph,  he  looked  upon  himself  as  a  victim  ; 
and  at  the  end  of  1813  he  was  still  denouncing 
Napoleon  from  his  castle  of  Morfontaine,  where  he 
lived  surrounded  by  a  little  court  which  Count  Miot 
de  Me'lito  thus  describes :  "  The  assemblage  of  per- 
sons at  Morfontaine  presented  a  curious  sight. 
There  was  to  be  seen  a  King  of  Spain  without  an 


292  MAKIE   LOUISE. 


inch  of  territory  in  that  country  j-a  wife  of  a  French 
general  who  had  been  raised  to  the  rank  of  Prince 
and  had  become  our  mortal  enemy ;  a  Princess,  the 
daughter  of  the  King  of  Wiirtemberg,  who  had  been 
given  in  marriage  to  a  brother  of  Napoleon,  and  who 
was  to  join  a  league  formed  to  overthrow  the  Em- 
peror's power ;  Spanish,  German,  and  French  courtiers, 
who  had  no  more  court  to  pay ;  and  to  crown  all,  the 
Patriarch  of  the  Indies,  Grand  Inquisitor  of  Spain, 
said  mass  to  us  from  time  to  time.  Hunting,  fishing, 
picnics,  meals,  the  card  table,  brought  together  the 
crowd  who  were  surprised  to  find  themselves  together. 
We  were  all  simply  amusing  ourselves  until  the  tem- 
pest that  was  roaring  at  a  distance  should  break  upon 
us  and  scatter  us." 

To  Joseph's  great  despair,  Napoleon,  who  saw  at 
last  that  his  brother's  cause  in  Spain  was  absolutely 
desperate,  had  secretly  negotiated  with  Ferdinand 
VII.,  who  was  still  a  prisoner  in  the  Castle  of 
Valengay.  Then  a  treaty  had  been  drawn  up, 
December  11,  1813,  containing  the  following  condi- 
tions: The  restoration  of  Ferdinand  VII.  to  the 
throne,  the  return  of  the  French  garrisons,  the  with- 
drawal of  the  Spanish  and  English  armies  beyond 
the  Pyrenees,  and  a  general  amnesty.  If  this  treaty 
had  been  signed  a  few  weeks  earlier,  it  would  have 
saved  the  Empire,  by  adding  to  Napoleon's  army  all 
the  French  troops  in  Spain.  But  it  was  too  late. 
The  Spanish  Regency  threw  delays  in  the  way  of  the 
recognition  of  the  treaty,  and  Wellington  continued 
his  march. 


THE  BEGINNING    OF    1814.  293 

When  Joseph  heard  that  the  treaty  of  Valengay 
had  been  signed,  he  was  profoundly  mortified.  He 
regarded  himself  as  tricked,  insulted,  betrayed  by  his 
brother ;  and  no  sovereign  by  divine  right  was  ever 
more  furious  at  the  loss  of  his  crown.  The  King  of 
Spain,  after  he  was  dispossessed,  imagined  that  he 
could  obtain  another  kingdom,  as  if  Napoleon  still 
had  thrones  at  his  disposition.  A  long  and  painful 
negotiation  was  to  ensue  between  the  two  brothers 
before  Joseph  could  resign  himself  to  being  simply 
a  French  Prince,  still  bearing  the  title  of  King. 
December  29,  1813,  he  wrote  to  the  Emperor:  — 

"  SIRE  :  The  violation  of  Swiss  territory  has  opened 
France  to  the  enemy.  In  such  circumstances  I  desire 
that  Your  Majesty  should  be  convinced  that  my 
heart  is  wholly  French.  Having  been  brought  back 
to  France  by  events,  I  should  be  happy  to  be  of  any 
use  to  you,  and  am  ready  to  undertake  anything  to 
attest  my  devotion.  I  also  know,  Sire,  what  I  owe 
to  Spain ;  I  see  my  duty,  and  I  desire  to  do  it  thor- 
oughly. As  to  my  rights  I  am  anxious  only  to  sacri- 
fice them  in  behalf  of  the  general  good  of  humanity, 
happy  if,  by  this  sacrifice,  I  may  be  able  to  contribute 
to  the  pacification  of  Europe.  I  hope  that  Your 
Majesty  will  consent  to  appoint  one  of  his  Ministers 
to  come  to  an  understanding  on  this  subject  with  the 
Duke  of  Santa  FG*,  my  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs." 

The  Emperor  replied  :  — 

"  MY  BROTHER  :  I  have  received  your  letter  of 
December  29.  It  contains  too  much  wit  for  the  posi- 


294  MARIE    LOUISE. 


tioii  in  which  I  am  placed.  In  two  words  the  case 
stands  thus :  France  is  invaded,  all  Europe  is  in  arms 
against  France,  and  especially  against  me.  You  are 
no  longer  King  of  Spain.  I  do  not  desire  Spain  for 
myself,  and  I  am  not  desirous  of  disposing  of  it;  I 
do  not  care  to  interfere  any  further  with  the  affairs 
of  that  country  than  to  live  in  peace  with  it  and  to 
be  able  to  make  use  of  my  army.  What  do  you  mean 
to  do  ?  Do  you  desire  to  side  with  the  throne  like  a 
French  Prince  ?  You  have  my  friendship,  your  suite, 
and  will  be  my  subject,  as  a  Prince  of  the  blood. 
Then  you  must,  like  me,  announce  your  position ;  you 
must  write  me  a  plain  letter  which  I  can  have  printed, 
receive  all  the  authorities,  and  show  yourself  zealous 
for  me  and  for  the  King  of  Rome,  and  favorable  to 
the  Regency  of  the  Empress.  Do  you  not  find  that 
possible  ?  Have  you  not  enough  good  sense  for  that  ? 
If  not,  you  must  withdraw  to  a  distance  of  forty 
leagues  from  Paris  to  some  obscure  provincial  castle. 
There  you  will  live  quietly  if  I  live ;  you  will  be  killed 
or  arrested  if  I  die.  You  will  be  of  no  use  to  me,  to 
the  family,  to  your  daughters,  to  France ;  but  you 
will  not  be  dangerous  to  me,  and  will  not  annoy  me. 
Choose  promptly,  and  decide." 

Joseph  had  to  submit,  and  this  he  did.  January  7, 
1814,  he  wrote  to  his  brother :  — 

"SiKE:  I  have  received  Your  Majesty's  letter. 
You  speak  to  me  of  friendship,  and  I  confess  that  I 
had  not  expected  this.  I  respect  Your  Majesty  too 
highly,  and  I  set  too  much  store  by  your  friendship, 


THE    BEGINNING    OF    1814.  295 

not  to  accept  it  as  heartily  as  before.  The  first  proof 
of  it  that  Your  Majesty  can  give  me  is  to  appoint  M. 
de  Santa  FC*,  or  any  one  else,  to  superintend  the  dis- 
tribution of  aid  to  the  excellent  families  that  have 
followed  me  from  Spain.  The  second  is  to  approve 
my  retaining  the  Spanish  and  French  officers  whom, 
after  their  showing  me  such  remarkable  devotion,  I 
cannot  abandon  without  becoming  the  most  ungrate- 
ful and  neglectful  of  men." 

The  reconciliation  between  the  two  brothers  was 
complete.  January  10,  1814,  Napoleon  sent  this 
letter  to  Joseph:  — 

"  MY  BROTHER  :  I  have  it  published  in  an  order  of 
the  palace,  that  henceforth  you  are  to  be  announced 
as  King  Joseph,  and  the  Queen  as  Queen  Julia,  with 
the  honors  and  formalities  employed  for  French 
Princes.  ...  I  authorize  you  to  wear  the  uniform 
of  the  grenadiers  of  my  Guard,  such  as  I  wear  my- 
self. I  think  it  would  be  well  for  you  not  to  wear 
any  foreign  orders,  but  simply  a  French  decoration. 
Send  me  a  list  of  the  persons  you  would  like  to  have 
form  your  household,  as  well  as  the  Queen's  house- 
hold, and  tell  me  what  day  you  would  like  to  receive 
the  court  and  the  authorities." 

King  Joseph  established  himself  at  the  Luxem- 
bourg. The  palace  resumed  the  appearance  it  had 
worn  eight  years  before,  when  Joseph  lived  in  it  as 
a  French  Prince  and  Grand  Elector.  January  16, 
1814,  the  Senators  and  high  officers  of  the  Empire 
called  upon  him  there  to  pay  their  formal  respects. 


296  MARIE    LOUISE. 


At  the  very  moment  when  Napoleon  was  becoming 
reconciled  with  King  Joseph,  he  heard  of  the  defec- 
tion of  King  Murat.  Curiously  enough,  there  were 
at  that  time  two  Queens  of  the  Two  Sicilies,  one  by 
divine  right,  the  other  by  right  of  Napoleon's  con- 
quests ;  both  were  named  Caroline.  One  was  a  sister 
of  Marie  Antoinette,  the  other  the  sister  of  the  Em- 
peror Napoleon.  Well,  of  these  two  Queens,  the 
one  of  whom  the  Emperor  had  reason  to  approve 
was  the  sister  of  Marie  Antoinette.  While  Caroline, 
Murat's  wife,  was  already  thinking  of  siding  with 
Austria,  against  her  own  brother,  the  other  Caroline 
took  pains  to  send  Napoleon  word  in  good  season. 
June  8,  1813,  the  Count  of  Narbonne,  the  French 
Ambassador  at  Vienna,  had  written  to  the  Duke  of 
Bassano,  at  that  time  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs : 
"  I  must  inform  you  of  the  arrival  of  an  agent  of  the 
former  Queen  of  Naples,  the  mother-in-law  of  the 
Emperor  of  Austria.  He  has  orders  to  come  to  an 
understanding  with  the  French  Ambassador,  and  is 
to  give  me  a  memorandum  of  everything  that  he  has 
seen,  of  everything  with  which  he  is  charged.  .  .  . 
This  man,  who  brings,  as  it  were,  credentials  from 
the  Queen,  talks  of  nothing  but  the  hate  of  the  Eng- 
lish in  Sicily  and  Malta,  of  the  ways  of  driving  them 
out,  and  forces  me,  by  everything  that  he  says,  to 
recall  to  your  attention  what  I  had  the  honor  of  lay- 
ing before  you  with  regard  to  Prince  Cariati."  This 
Prince  was  aide-de-camp  of  King  Murat;  he  had 
aroused  the  suspicions  of  the  Count  of  Narbonne, 


THE    BEGINNING    OF   1814.  297 

who  wrote  about  him  thus :  "  Prince  Cariati,  who  has 
come  here  under  the  pretext  of  buying  horses,  holds 
himself  aloof  from  me  more  and  more  every  day,  and 
lives  on  most  friendly  terms  with  our  enemies.  Of 
whom,  of  what  is  he  the  agent?"  So  it  was  a  Prin- 
cess of  Bourbon,  a  Hapsburg  by  birth,  who  tried  to 
open  Napoleon's  eyes  to  the  approaching  defection  of 
the  husband  of  a  Princess  Bonaparte !  And  it  was 
this  same  sister  of  Queen  Marie  Antoinette  who  was 
soon  to  reproach  the  Empress  Marie  Louise  with 
having  abandoned  the  Emperor  in  his  misfortune ! 
That  was  certainly  one  of  the  strangest  occurrences 
in  a  period  fertile  in  contrasts  and  all  sorts  of  sur- 
prises. 

The  anticipations  of  the  sister  of  Marie  Antoinette 
were  soon  verified.  King  Joseph  wrote,  January  14, 
1813,  to  his  brother-in-law,  King  Murat :  "  I  have  just 
had  a  long  interview  with  the  Emperor,  and  I  am 
convinced  that  he  is  sincerely  desirous  of  peace.  If 
you  can  contribute  to  that  in  any  way,  it  will  only 
be  by  siding  as  your  heart  and  your  duties  direct, 
with  the  party  that  sincerely  desires  peace.  You 
cannot  forget  that  your  political  duty  is  to-day  in 
harmony  with  the  demands  of  honor,  which  require 
you  to  make  every  effort  to  procure  peace  for  France 
that  she  may  consolidate  the  present  political  institu- 
tions. I  do  not  think  I  am  wrong  in  thus  stating  to 
you  my  opinion.  I  am  convinced  that  the  misfor- 
tunes of  France  will  sooner  or  later  bring  about  your 
own.  A  prompt  peace  will  save  everything;  you 


298  MARIE    LOUISE. 


ought  then  to  aid  it  in  every  way,  and  to  be  sure  that 
this  peace  will  be  of  more  service  to  you  than  any- 
thing which  the  allies  may  now  promise  you.  Their 
promises  are  evidently  fallacious ;  the  day  when  you 
shall  give  yourself  up  to  them  will  have  no  morrow 
for  you,  because  then  they  will  have  no  interest  in 
sparing  you,  and  they  will  covet  for  themselves  or  for 
their  families  the  possession  of  the  most  beautiful 
country  in  Europe.  Your  existence,  my  dear  brother, 
is  certainly  bound  up  with  the  Imperial  dynasty  of 
France.  If  the  Bourbons  could  reappear  in  France, 
do  you  think  that  you  would  long  retain  Naples? 
However,  fortune  has  changed,  and  the  allies  are  now 
the  stronger ;  but  if  all  the  Princes  of  the  Emperor's 
family,  if  all  Frenchmen  follow  my  example,  the 
balance  will  soon  be  restored,  peace  will  be  made,  and 
the  different  States  consolidated.  This  requires  that 
you  reject  every  other  feeling,  and  that  you  throw 
yourself,  with  the  noble  enthusiasm  for  the  right  that 
distinguishes  you,  on  the  side  of  duty,  of  honor." 

Alas !  why  did  not  Murat,  the  champion  of  the 
Revolution,  the  first  cavalry  officer  in  Europe,  the 
embodiment  of  bravery,  the  hero  of  legend,  listen  to 
the  patriotic  advice  of  Joseph?  He  might  have 
united  his  forces  with  those  of  Prince  Eugene  and 
have  attacked  the  invasion  in  the  rear ;  he  would  have 
saved  the  Empire  and  France ;  he  would  have  died 
on  the  throne,  covered  with  glory,  instead  of  being 
shot !  But  what  did  he  do  ?  He  joined  with  Aus- 
tria, and  declared  war  against  France  ;  he  invaded  the 


THE   BEGINNING    OF   1814.  299 

Roman  States  which  then  formed  a  French  depart- 
ment, the  Department  of  the  Tiber,  and  became  one 
of  the  principal  members  of  the  coalition. 

On  hearing  this  Napoleon  sent  Monseigneur  de 
Beaumont,  the  Archbishop  of  Bourges,  to  Fontaine- 
bleau,  bearing  this  letter  to  the  Pope :  — 

"  VEKY  HOLY  FATHEK  :  I  turn  to  Your  Holiness 
to  inform  you  that  inasmuch  as  the  King  of  Naples 
has  formed  an  alliance  with  the  coalition,  of  which 
one  object  seems  to  be  the  eventual  reunion  of  Rome 
wiih  its  States,  His  Majesty  the  Emperor  and  King 
has  judged  it  in  conformity  with  the  true  policy  of 
his  Empire  and  the  interests  of  the  Roman  people  to 
restore  the  Roman  States  to  Your  Holiness.  He  pre- 
fers seeing  them  in  your  hands  to  seeing  them  in  the 
hands  of  any  other  Sovereign  whatsoever.  Conse- 
quently, I  am  authorized  to  sign  a  treaty  re-establishing 
peace  between  the  Emperor  and  the  Pope.  The  tem- 
poral power  of  Your  Holiness  will  be  recognized,  and 
the  Roman  States,  so  far  as  they  have  been  added  to 
the  French  Empire,  will  be  restored,  together  with 
the  fortresses,  to  the  hands  of  Your  Holiness,,  or  of 
his  agents ;  this  Convention  will  relate  only  to  tem- 
poral matters  and  to  the  Pope  as  Sovereign  of  Rome." 
This  letter  was  given  to  the  Pope  January  20,,  1814.. 

Count  d'Haussonville,  in  his  fine  and  dignified 
studies  on  the  Church  of  Rome  and  the  First  Empire, 
has  observed :  "Strangely  enough  it  was  the  Emperor 
who  voluntarily  offered  the  Pope,  not  merely  liberty, 
not  merely  the  restoration  of  part  of  his  States,  but 


300  MARIE    LOUISE. 


the  complete  re-establishment  of  his  temporal  sover- 
eignty as  it  had  existed  before  all  the  wars,  which, 
ever  since  the  Revolution,  had  changed  the  whole 
face  of  Europe.  Stranger  still,  by  a  curious  exchange 
of  positions,  which  almost  seemed  like  a  punish- 
ment, it  was  now  Napoleon,  who  after  violently 
wringing  from  the  Pope  so  many  sacrifices,  was  re- 
duced to  wondering  whether  the  Pope  would  receive 
this  present  from  his  hand.  He  was  justified  in  his 
doubts,  for  Pius  VII.  refused  it." 

The  Holy  Father  received  M.  de  Beaumont  with 
his  usual  kindliness,  but  told  him  that  he  could  not 
enter  into  any  negotiations,  because  the  restoration 
of  his  States,  being  a  mere  act  of  justice,  could  not 
become  the  subject  of  any  treaty,  and  that  besides, 
whatever  he  should  do  outside  of  his  own  States 
would  seem  the  result  of  violence,  and  would  be  an 
occasion  for  offence  for  the  Catholic  world.  "All 
that  I  ask,"  he  went  on,  "  is  to  return  to  Rome  as 
soon  as  possible.  I  have  need  of  nothing,  and  Prov- 
idence alone  will  lead  me  back.  It  is  possible  that 
my  sins  make  me  unworthy  of  seeing  Rome  again, 
but  you  may  be  sure  that  my  successors  will  recover 
all  the  States  that  belong  to  them." 

What  had  been  the  upshot  of  the  conqueror's  at- 
tempts on  the  Eternal  City  ?  He  had  succeeded  no 
better  in  Rome  than  in  Spain.  This  hardy  gamester, 
who  had  been  so  successful  at  the  beginning  of  his 
career,  failed  at  every  point  the  moment  that  his  luck 
left  him.  The  construction  that  he  had  reared  at 


TLLE    BEGINNING    OF    1814.  301 

the  cost  of  so  much  blood  fell  like  card-houses.  The 
earth  crumbled  before  him.  Betrayed  by  fortune, 
suspicious  of  his  own  family,  regretting  the  short- 
lived crowns  he  had  given  to  his  brothers  and  his 
brother-in-law,  perceiving  only  too  late  that  the  main 
cause  of  his  disasters  was  that  he  had  set  a  fruitless 
family  ambition  above  the  great  principle  of  nation- 
ality, Napoleon,  dissatisfied  with  himself  and  with 
others,  did  not  like  to  see  his  brothers  dethroned ; 
they  were  a  living  reproach  to  him.  This  principle 
of  nationality,  the  programme  of  which  he  announced 
only  at  Saint  Helena  —  the  application  of  which,  tim- 
idly and  incompletely  tried  by  his  successor,  was  to 
be  so  fatal  to  France  —  the  principle  which  he  had 
failed  to  recognize  throughout  his  reign,  in  Holland, 
Germany,  Spain,  and  Italy,  created  against  the  win- 
ner of  countless  battles  a  coalition  of  peoples  far 
more  to  be  feared  than  a  coalition  of  kings. 

Ferdinand  VII.  was  to  leave  Valen§ay  too  late,  and 
Pius  VII.,  Fontainebleau  too  late.  If  the  Holy 
Father  had  been  restored  to  his  temporal  sovereignty 
a  few  weeks  earlier,  he  would  have  prevented  Murat's 
invasion  of  the  Roman  States,  he  would  have  pre- 
vented the  defection  which  that  brave  monarch, 
when  he  returned  in  the  following  year  to  a  feeling 
of  his  duties  towards  France  and  the  Emperor,  was 
to  atone  for  most  heroically. 

Napoleon,  when  he  was  about  to  take  an  eternal 
farewell  of  his  wife  and  son,  was  overwhelmed  with 
the  gloomiest  thoughts.  To  whatever  side  he  turned 


302 


his  eyes,  he  saw  on  the  horizon  nothing  but  clouds  as 
black  as  night,  or  red  as  blood.  About  his  tottering 
throne  he  perceived  an  air  rank  with  a  fatal  taint  of 
decay  and  treachery.  Doubtful  of  everything,  no 
longer  forming  illusions,  he  vowed  to  throw  the  final 
cast,  to  conquer  or  die ;  but  Providence  was  not  to 
cqaaent,  and  he  would  have  smiled  pitifully  if  any 
ne  had  predicted  to  him  that  he  would  survive  the 
and  humiliations  concealed  in  the  imme- 
It was  through  his  pride  that  the  great 
manrrrad  sinned,  and  it  was  in  his  pride  that  he  was 
to  be  punished. 


XX. 

MARIE  LOUISE'S   FAREWELL. 

WHEN  Napoleon  was  on  the  point  of  setting 
out  for  the  war,  he  consoled  himself  for  all 
his  cares  and  sorrows  with  seeing  his  son.  But  this 
sight  brought  anguish  as  well  as  comfort.  What 
future  did  Providence  reserve  for  the  boy  ?  Would 
he  be  Emperor  or  an  exile?  Would  his  first  steps 
be  guided  by  his  father,  or  would  he  become  a 
prisoner  of  the  foreigners?  Would  he  wield  the 
sceptre  of  the  new  Charlemagne,  or  suffer  the  fate  of 
Astyanax  ?  It  was  a  cruel  uncertainty,  an  enigma  of 
fate !  Then  the  conqueror,  knowing  by  experience 
what  a  father's  love  is,  possibly  repented  the  barren 
sacrifice  of  so  many  young  men  upon  the  battlefield. 
Then  he  was  moved  by  a  retrospective  pity,  and  the 
voice  of  humanity  made  him  quiver.  His  own  suf- 
fering taught  him  what  others  had  suffered,  and 
reminded  him  of  the  anguish  he  had  brought  on 
other  parents,  who  had  known  the  torture  of  surviv- 
ing their  children.  He  no  longer  loved  war,  which 
before  had  been  the  object  of  his  ardent  passion. 
Instead  of  preparing  new  slaughter,  he  would  have 

303 


304  MAEIE    LOUISE. 


preferred  to  dry  the  tears  and  to  heal  the  wounds, 
making  himself  loved  and  blessed.  But  it  was  too 
late.  The  untiring  warrior  became  peaceable  when 
peace  was  no  longer  possible.  There  was  no  other 
solution  than  bloodshed,  and  always  more  bloodshed. 
He  who  had  taken  the  sword  was  to  perish  by  the 
sword.  Meanwhile  his  eyes,  still  full  of  gloomy 
visions,  which  had  gazed  on  burning  Moscow,  on  the 
snowfields  of  Russia,  the  struggle  on  the  Elster  bridge, 
were  resting  gently  on  the  fair  head  of  the  boy  who 
looked  like  an  angel.  His  ears,  so  long  fatigued  by 
the  roar  of  shells  and  muskets,  now  found  delight  in 
listening  to  the  first  stammering  words  of  infancy. 
He,  sated  with  glory,  tired  of  all  the  grandeur  and 
the  misery  of  the  world,  sick  of  the  smell  of  incense, 
already  suspected  that  after  all  their  adulation,  his 
courtiers  would  hurl  mud  in  his  face,  and  depressed 
by  all  this  ingratitude,  apostasy,  and  treachery,  he 
became  disgusted  with  human  nature,  and  found  his 
only  pleasure  in  the  contemplation  of  innocence. 

The  King  of  Rome  was  nearly  three  years  old.  His 
charming  disposition  and  his  precocious  intelligence 
were  much  admired.  Madame  de  Montesquiou,  his 
governess,  said  that  he  was  "  proud  and  sensitive." 
"Proud  and  sensitive,"  repeated  Napoleon;  "that 
is  very  well.  That  is  the  way  .1  like  to  have  him." 
Amid  the  numberless  cares  besieging  him  during  the 
troubled  days  preceding  the  fatal  campaign  of  1814, 
the  Emperor,  in  spite  of  the  manifold  afflictions  that 
tormented  him,  found  time  to  play  with  his  son. 


MAIUE    LOUISE'S    FAREWELL.  305 

M.  de  Me*neval  says  :  "  Whether  he  was  busy  reading 
an  important  report,  or  was  sitting  at  his  desk,  which 
was  hollowed  in  the  middle,  with  two  shelves,  like 
wings,  on  the  sides,  and  was  always  covered  deep 
with  papers,  when  he  was  signing  a  despatch,  every 
word  of  which  had  to  be  weighed,  his  son,  seated  on 
his  knees  or  held  against  his  breast,  never  left  him. 
Being  endowed  with  a  wonderful  power  of  concen- 
trating his  attention,  he  knew  how  to  give  his  atten- 
tion to  the  most  serious  matters  while  humoring  his 
son's  whims.  Sometimes  he  would  lay  aside  his 
great  thoughts  and  lie  down  on  the  floor  by  the  side 
of  his  son,  playing  with  him  like  another  child,  eager 
to  amuse  him  and  to  spare  him  every  annoyance."- 

Napoleon  never  grew  tired  of  looking  at  the  little 
King  of  Rome.  A  vague  foreboding  warned  him 
that  he  had  not  long  to  see  him,  and  he  was  softened, 
and  he  wished  to  inspire  others  with  his  own  feel- 
ings ;  he  hoped  that  the  appeals  of  his  paternal  heart 
would  find  echoes  in  others'  hearts.  Sunday,  Janu- 
ary 24,  1814,  he  assembled  at  the  Tuileries,  in  the 
Hall  of  the  Marshals,  the  officers  of  the  National 
Guard  which  was  to  defend  Paris,  and  prepared  one 
of  those  moving,  pathetic,  as  well  as  somewhat 
theatrical  scenes,  of  which  he  possessed  the  secret ; 
for  no  man  in  the  world  understood  better  how  to 
strike  the  imagination  and  to  place  himself  majes- 
tically before,  not  merely  his  contemporaries,  but  also 
posterity. 

The  officers  of  the  National  Guard,  to  the  number 


306  MARIE    LOUISE. 


of  seven  or  eight  hundred,  all  in  uniform,  formed  in 
a  circle  around  the  Hall  of  the  Marshals.  At  noon 
the  Emperor  passed  through  this  hall  on  his  way  to 
the  chapel,  according  to  his  habit  on  Sundays,  and 
he  was  warmly  greeted.  He  did  not  stop,  but  pushed 
011  to  the  mass.  That  over,  he  returned,  and  took  up 
his  place  in  the  middle  of  the  hall  where  the  officers 
of  the  twelve  legions  of  the  National  Guard  of  Paris 
had  remained.  A  few  moments  later,  the  Empress 
appeared  accompanied  by  Madame  de  Montesquiou, 
who  held  the  King  of  Rome  in  her  arms.  No  one 
expected  this ;  and  the  reason  of  this  sudden  entrance 
was  unknown  to  all.  Napoleon  had  the  little  King 
put  down ;  then,  holding  him  by  one  hand  while  his 
mother  held  him  by  the  other,  he  made  his  way  to 
the  midst  of  the  group  of  officers  of  the  National 
Guard  who  lined  the  Hall  of  the  Marshals ;  then, 
with  a  warmth  and  an  emotion  which  deeply  moved 
his  hearers,  he  uttered  these  solemn  words  :  "  Officers 
of  the  National  Guard,  I  am  glad  to  see  you  gath- 
ered about  me.  I  am  starting  to  take  my  place  at 
the  head  of  my  army.  As  I  leave  the  capital  I 
confide  to  your  protection  my  wife  and  my  son  on 
whom  so  many  hopes  rest.  I  owed  you  this  proof  of 
my  confidence  in  return  for  all  those  that  you  have 
never  ceased  to  give  me  at  the  most  important 
moments  of  my  career.  I  shall  leave  without  anx- 
iety, since  they  will  be  under  your  faithful  guard. 
I  leave  in  your  care  what  is,  next  to  France,  the 
dearest  thing  I  have  in  the  world.  It  may  happen 


MARIE    LOUISE'S    FAREWELL.  307 

that  during  the  coming  campaign  the  enemy  may 
find  an  opportunity  to  approach  your  walls.  If  this 
takes  place,  remember  it  can  be  an  affair  of  no  more 
than  a  few  days,  and  that  I  shall  soon  come  to  your  aid. 
I  beg  of  you  to  remain  united  and  to  withstand  all 
attempts  to  divide  you.  Every  means  will  be  em- 
ployed to  detach  you  from  the  faithful  performance 
of  your  duties  ;  but  I  count  on  your  rejection  of  these 
perfidious  temptations."  Then  Napoleon  stopped  for 
a  moment ;  he  fixed  his  eyes  on  Marie  Louise  and  on 
the  King  of  Rome  whom  the  Empress  had  taken  in 
her  arms  and  showing  the  Assembly  the  child  whose 
expressive  face  seemed  to  correspond  with  the  solem- 
nity of  the  occasion,  he  exclaimed,  with  a  voice  full 
of  emotion,  "  I  entrust  her  to  you,  gentlemen ;  I 
entrust  her  to  the  affection  of  my  faithful  city  of 
Paris." 

At  these  words  their  enthusiasm  reached  its  height ; 
tears  filled  every  eye.  In  the  hall  there  was  not  a 
single  man  who  did  not  seem  ready  to  shed  the  last 
drop  of  his  blood  in  behalf  of  the  Imperial  family. 

The  very  men  who,  the  evening  before,  had  been 
harshly  criticising  the  Emperor,  forgot  their  griefs  in 
a  moment.  They  condemned  the  monarch ;  they  had 
pity  for  the  father.  What  he  had  lost  as  Emperor 
he  regained  as  a  man.  Politics  gave  way  to  humanity. 
Marie  Louise,  generally  cold  and  self-possessed,  was 
overcome  by  the  general  emotion  and  nearly  fainted. 
This  foreigner  was  for  a  moment  the  living  image, 
the  symbol  of  France  harassed  and  distressed.  Napo- 


308  MARIE    LOUISE. 


leon,  seeing  that  he  was  still  loved  and  admired,  had 
a  momentary  return  of  confidence  in  himself  and  his 
star.  He  fancied  himself  capable  of  wonders,  as  in 
the  heroic  days  of  his  marvellous  career.  His  genius 
arose  to  its  full  height.  He  dreamed  of  a  brilliant 
revenge,  of  ovations,  and  of  a  real  apotheosis.  He 
promised  himself  a  return  under  triumphal  arches. 

The  Emperor  received  the  high  officials  after  the 
officers  of  the  National  Guard.  "  What  struck  me 
most,"  says  Count  Miot  de  M  elite,  "  was  the  language 
of  the  Senators.  Never  had  they  been  more  obse- 
quious. Among  others  M.  de  Laplace,  who  came 
up  to  me,  spoke  of  the  state  of  affairs  with  such 
keen  interest,  of  his  devotion  to  the  Emperor,  and  of 
his  confidence  in  him  with  such  deep  emotion,  and 
especially  of  the  current  rumor  of  the  proclamation 
at  Bordeaux  in  favor  of  the  Bourbons  with  such 
indignation,  that  I  might  have  thought  that  the 
former  royal  dynasty  had  no  greater  enemy,  and  our 
Emperor  no  greater  friend  than  he.  Could  I  indeed 
have  ever  supposed  from  his  language  that,  as  has 
since  been  affirmed,  he  had  never  ceased  to  love  the 
Bourbons  in  his  heart !  " 

Miot  de  Melito  said,  speaking  of  this  same  recep- 
tion, January  23,  1814 :  "  The  Emperor  received  the 
officials,  to  whom  he  uttered  assurances  of  devotion 
which  were  soon  contradicted.  But  it  was  his  fate 
to  nourish  illusions  up  to  the  last,  and  to  take  for 
sincere  protestations  of  loyalty  what  were  really  arti- 
ficial utterances  begotten  by  long  practice  in  servility. 


MARIE    LOUISE'S    FAREWELL.  309 

As  for  me,  I  soon  discerned,  in  all  I  saw  and  heard, 
the  change  that  had  taken  place  in  this  court,  at  once 
so  magnificent  and  so  humble.  I  recalled  the  bril- 
liant days  after  the  birth  of  the  King  of  Rome,  and 
compared  them  with  those  I  was  witnessing.  Where 
was  the  herd  of  Ambassadors  from  every  nation,  the 
Princes,  the  Kings,  the  courtiers,  who,  in  other  and 
different  days,  crowded  this  place,  and  saluted  the 
throne,  now  so  insecure?  All  that  pomp  had  van- 
ished. Of  the  crowd  of  foreigners  there  remained 
only  a  few  Senators,  a  handful  of  German  or  Italian 
Council] ors  of  State,  summoned  from  the  departments 
annexed  to  France." 

Touching  as  was  the  scene  of  the  morning,  that 
of  the  evening  was  profoundly  gloomy.  Count  Mol- 
lien,  Minister  of  the  Treasury,  thus  describes  it: 
"  When  the  Empress  had  gone  away,  the  Emperor 
detained  the  Ministers,  to  whom,  he  said,  he  wished 
to  announce  his  final  preparations.  His  first  words, 
in  fact,  had  all  the  solemnity  of  the  reading  of  a 
will ;  but  after  he  had  spoken  briefly  of  the  insuffi- 
ciency of  the  means  at  his  disposal,  in  spite  of  the 
exertions  of  his  Ministers,  to  whom  he  rendered  per^ 
feet  justice,  his  eye,  as  if  falling  by  chance  on  those 
present,  lighted  up,  and  as  if  suddenly  inspired,  he 
added  that  he  knew  very  well  that  he  was  leaving  in 
Paris  other  enemies  than  those  with  whom  he  was 
going  to  fight,  and  that  his  absence  left  the  field  free 
for  them.  These  insinuations  were  veiled,  but  there 
was  no  possibility  of  mistaking  them.  He  grew 


310  MARIE    LOUISE. 


more  violent  when  he  noticed  that  this  official  coolly 
continued  his  conversation  with  King  Joseph  in  a 
corner  of  the  room.  Count  Mollien  then  spoke  to 
the  Emperor  of  the  financial  condition,  and  proposed 
measures  to  prevent  an  absolute  deficit.  'My  dear 
man,'  said  Napoleon,  '  if  the  enemy  reaches  the  gates 
of  Paris,  the  Empire  will  have  ceased  to  exist.' " 

The  same  day,  Sunday,  January  23,  1814,  Pope 
Pius  VII.  left  Fontainebleau.  He  had  refused  to 
treat  with  Napoleon,  but  he  had  said  to  the  prelate 
charged  with  proposing  the  arrangement  to  him : 
"  Assure  the  Emperor  that  I  am  not  his  enemy.  I 
love  France,  and  when  I  get  to  Rome,  you  will  see 
that  I  shall  do  everything  that  is  proper."  Since 
Cossack  bands  had  already  appeared  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Montereau,  Napoleon  did  not  care  to  leave 
his  venerable  adversary  within  reach  of  a  sudden 
attack.  But,  instead  of  letting  him  depart  alone  and 
free,  he  had  entrusted  him  to  the  care  of  Lagorse,  the 
commander  of  the  gens  d'armes,  who,  while  seeming 
to  carry  him  back  to  Rome,  was  really  charged  with 
leading  him  slowly,  by  a  devious  route,  to  Savona, 
where  a  credit  had  already  been  deposited  with  the 
Receiver  General  of  the  Department  of  Montenotte, 
providing  twelve  thousand  francs  a  month  for  the 
support  of  the  Pope. 

The  Pope  was  then  still  a  prisoner.  As  M.  Veuil- 
lot  has  said :  "  It  was  well  that  the  Roman  pontiff, 
timid  and  captive,  should  nevertheless  appear  before 
the  eyes  of  the  whole  world  as  the  only  sovereign 


MARIE    LOUISE'S    FAREWELL.  311 

whom  Napoleon  could  not  force  to  abandon  his  duty. 
When  England  invented  so  many  lies  and  purchased 
so  much  treachery,  when  haughty  Austria  gave  the 
hand  of  an  Archduchess  to  the  divorced  husband  of 
Josephine,  this  dethroned  monarch,  this  poor  priest, 
gazing  at  his  crucifix,  after  listening  to  the  Imperial 
messages  of  human  omnipotence,  replied,  '  No ;  I  will 
not  give  up  my  conscience  to  recover  my  crown  ! 
Non  possumus.'  The  world  had  need  of  this  lesson, 
at  once  haughty  and  humble." 

At  the  moment  of  leaving  Fontainebleau,  Pius  VII., 
who  had  just  heard  mass,  summoned  all  the  Cardinals 
present  in  the  palace,  and  spoke  to  them  these  words  : 
"  On  the  point  of  leaving  you,  without  knowing  our 
destination,  even  without  knowing  whether  we  shall 
have  the  consolation  of  seeing  you  again  gathered 
about  us,  we  have  desired  to  call  you  together  to 
express  our  feelings  and  our  intentions.  We  have 
the  firm  conviction  —  and  could  we  think  otherwise  ? 
—  that  your  conduct,  whether  you  remain  together 
or  are  again  scattered,  will  conform  to  your  position 
and  your  character.  Still,  we  recommend  you  all, 
wherever  you  may  be  transferred,  to  act  in  such  a 
way  that  your  attitude  and  all  your  actions  shall 
express  the  just  grief  you  feel  for  the  sufferings  of 
the  church  and  for  the  captivity  of  its  head.  .  .  . 
We  expressly  recommend  to  you  to  close  your  ears 
to  any  proposition  relating  to  a  treaty  about  spiritual 
and  temporal  affairs ;  for  this  is  our  absolute  and  firm 


312  MARIE    LOUISE. 


wish."  The  Cardinals  were  touched,  and  promised 
obedience.  Then  the  Holy  Father,  after  a  short 
prayer,  went  down  into  the  courtyard  by  the  grand 
staircase,  by  which  Napoleon  was  to  come  down  a 
few  weeks  later  to  bid  his  memorable  farewell  to  the 
Imperial  Guard.  The  venerable  old  man,  calm  and 
serene,  quietly  entered  the  carriage  which  was  to 
carry  him  to  his  unknown  destination ;  and  extend- 
ing his  arms  through  the  window,  gave  a  last  bless- 
ing to  the  few  spectators  who  stood  mourning  his 
departure. 

It  was  when  Pius  VII.  was  leaving  Fontainebleau 
that  Napoleon  was  signing  the  letters  patent  con- 
ferring the  regency  upon  the  Empress.  Marie  Louise 
took  her  oath  before  her  husband,  at  a  council  com- 
posed of  the  French  Princes,  the  high  officials,  and 
the  Ministers.  At  that  time  she  was  determined  to 
remain  faithful  to  this  oath  as  sovereign,  wife,  and 
mother.  It  must  be  acknowledged  that  up  to  the  fall 
of  the  Empire  she  did  nothing  blameworthy,  and  that, 
though  she  left  Paris,  it  was  with  great  regret  and 
in  obedience  to  her  husband's  formal  command.  At 
this  time  her  attitude  was  absolutely  correct,  and  in 
none  of  the  contemporary  Memoirs  do  we  find  a  word 
of  criticism  of  her  conduct  up  to  the  time  of  her 
husband's  abdication. 

Later  she  displayed  ingratitude,  and  a  lack  of  the 
devotion  which  her  duty  required ;  but  it  would  be 
unjust  to  hold  her  responsible  for  the  sufferings  of 


MARIE    LOUISE'S    FAREWELL.  313 

France.  Her  leave-taking  from  the  Emperor,  which 
took  place  at  the  Tuileries,  January  25, 1814,  at  seven 
in  the  morning,  was  very  touching.  She  wept  pro- 
fusely. Thiers  says  about  this  farewell :  "  Napoleon, 
when  he  left,  unconscious  that  he  was  embracing 
them  for  the  last  time,  hugged  tenderly  his  wife  and 
his  son.  His  wife  was  in  tears,  and  feared  she  would 
never  see  him  again.  She  was  in  fact  fated  never 
to  see  him,  although  the  enemy's  bullets  were  not 
to  kill  him.  She  would  certainly  have  been  much 
surprised  if  she  had  been  told  that  this  husband,  then 
the  object  of  all  her  care,  was  to  die  on  a  distant 
island,  in  the  middle  of  the  ocean,  the  prisoner  of 
Europe,  and  forgotten  by  her.  As  for  him,  no  pre- 
diction would  have  astonished  him,  —  whether  the 
cruelest  desertion,  the  most  ardent  devotion,  —  for  he 
expected  anything  from  men ;  he  knew  them  to  the 
core,  though  he  treated  them  as  if  he  did  not  know 
what  they  really  were." 

Laying  aside  his  sceptre  and  his  gala  dress  to  put 
on  his  uniform  and  his  sword,  the  Emperor  became 
a  soldier.  As  Lamartine  said :  "  The  most  prejudiced 
historian  finds  him  great  in  this  final  effort  to  grasp 
his  fleeting  fortune.  He  seemed  ten  years  younger. 
His  soul,  which  had  been  benumbed  by  the  throne, 
triumphed  over  the  languor  of  his  body."  The 
trumpet-call  aroused  the  hero  of  countless  battles. 
He  seemed  back  in  the  days  of  Arcole  and  Castig- 
lione.  But  if  he  had  the  genius  of  that  time,  he 


314  MARIE    LOUISE. 


lacked  the  good  fortune.  As  admirable  a  tactician 
in  the  campaign  of  1814  as  at  any  period  of  his 
career,  he  was  to  accomplish  miracles,  but  fruitless 
miracles ;  and  his  superhuman  efforts  proved  power- 
less against  implacable  fate. 


INDEX. 


Allies,  make  overtures  of  peace  to 
Napoleon,  274;  cross  the  Rhine, 
280. 

Army,  grand,  of  the  Russian  inva- 
sion, its  fate,  96;  letters  from,  99. 

Austria,  Empress  of,  at  the  head  of 
the  party  against  Napoleon,  152; 
her  hatred  of  Napoleon  and 
France,  174. 

Austria,  war-feeling  in,  235;  ulti- 
matum of,  240. 

Bassano,  his  letter  to  the  Duke  of 
Vicenza  respecting  Napoleon's  in- 
tention, 236. 

Bavaria,  the  King  of,  joins  the 
coalition,  254. 

Bausset,  Baron  of,  brings  portrait 
of  the  King  of  Rome  to  Napoleon, 
9;  quoted,  20. 

Beauharnais,  Prince  Eugene,  his 
gallantry  at  the  battle  of  Maro- 
Jaroslawitz,  50. 

Beaumont,  Monseigneur  de,  sent  to 
Pius  VII.  with  Napoleon's  letter, 
299. 

Beresina,  the  passage  of  the,  61. 

Bernadotte  at  the  battle  of  Leipsic, 
262. 

Blucher,  crosses  the  Rhine,  280. 

Bonaparte,  Jerome,  forbidden  by 
Napoleon  to  come  to  Paris,  291. 

Bonaparte,  Joseph,  denounces  Na- 
poleon, 291 ;  letter  of,  to,  293;  ac- 
cepts Napoleon's  proposition,  295; 
urges  Murat  to  side  with  Napo- 
leon, 297. 

Bonaparte,  Louis,  letter  of,  to  Cau- 
laiucourt,  on  his  kingdom,  291. 


Bonaparte,  Lucien,  on  bad  terms 

with  Napoleon,  291. 
Borodino,  battle  of,  11. 
Bourbons,  the,  not  considered,  231. 

Cambaceres,  Archchancellor,  pre- 
sides at  the  meetings  of  the  minis- 
ters, 2 ;  made  First  Counsellor  of 
the  Regency,  188 ;  proposes  in  the 
Senate  a  draft  of  two  hundred 
and  eighty  thousand  men,  260. 

Cariati,  Prince,  an  agent  of  Murat, 
297. 

Caulaincourt,  see  Vicenza,  Duke 
of. 

Caroline,  Queen  of  Naples,  sends 
Napoleon  word  of  Murat's  defec- 
tion, 297. 

Cherbourg,  the  grand  basin  at, 
opened  by  Marie  Louise,  249. 

Chateaubriand,  sarcastic  reference 
of,  to  Napoleon's  29th  bulletin, 
80;  his  comment  on  the  self- 
effacement  of  the  Senate,  88; 
quoted,  270. 

Comedie  Fran^aise,  the  actors  of, 
at  Dresden,  214. 

Concordat  of  Fontainebleau,  arti- 
cles of,  116;  signed  by  Pius  VII., 
118. 

Constant,  Memoirs  of,  quoted,  93. 

Daru,  Count,  advises  Napoleon  to 
winter  in  Moscow,  23. 

Davout,  Marshal,  illusions  of,  re- 
specting the  Russian  campaign, 
19,  27;  his -unshaken  courage, 
98. 

Duroc,  General,  death  of,  209. 

315 


316 


INDEX. 


Duruy,  M.  Albert,  his  article  on 
Malet's  conspiracy,  45,  47. 

Eble',  General,  saves  the  army  at 
the  passage  of  the  Beresina,  61. 

Esterhazy,  Prince,  to  represent 
Francis  II.  at  the  coronation  of 
the  King  of  Rome,  161. 

Fain,  Baron,  his  descriptions  of  the 
retreat,  quoted,  51,  54. 

Fichte,  Professor,  quotation  from, 
269. 

Floret,  tries  to  reassure  Marie 
Louise,  196. 

Francis  II.,  his  desire  for  peace, 
103 ;  letter  of,  to  Napoleon  on  the 
proposition  for  peace,  106;  not 
hostile  to  Napoleon,  154 ;  greatly 
disturbed  by  the  course  of  events, 
157 ;  sends  General  Bubna  to  Na- 
poleon after  the  victory  of  Llit- 
zen,  204. 

Frederick  William,  King,  a  hostage 
in  his  own  capital,  125;  had  no 
part  in  General  York's  defection, 
131 ;  hesitating,  132 ;  sends  Napo- 
leon assurances  of  his  fidelity,  133. 

Goethe's  conversation  with  Napo- 
leon in  1808,  224. 

Guidal,  General,  released  from 
prison  by  Malet,  36 ;  shot,  44. 

Hatzfeld,  Prince,  commissioned  by 
Frederick  William  to  assure  Na- 
poleon of  his  fidelity,  133;  and 
to  broach  the  matrimonial  pro- 
ject, 135 ;  failure  of  his  mission, 
139. 

Haussonville,  Count  d',  quoted,  299. 

Hulin,  General,  arrested  by  Malet, 


Korner,  quotation  from  his  Lyre 

and  Sword,  269. 
Kremlin,  Napoleon  in  the,  14. 
Kutusoff,  General,  not  appreciated 

by  the  Russians,  61. 


Lacipede,  the  Count  of,  replies  to 
the  address  of  Marie  Louise  to 
the  Senate,  26. 

Lacordaire's  Conferences  de  Tou- 
louse quoted,  215. 

Lahorie,  General,  released  from 
prison  by  Malet,  36 ;  shot,  44. 

Leipsic,  the  battle  of,  262 ;  the  pas- 
sage of  the  Elster,  264. 

Lefebvre,  M.  Edouard,  reports  the 
state  of  things  in  Prussia,  139. 

Liitzen,  Napoleon's  victory  at,  197 ; 
celebration  of,  200. 

Macdonald,  General,  letter  of,  to 
General  Berthier  on  York's  de- 
fection, 131. 

Malet,  General  Charles  Fra^ois  de, 
32 ;  conspiracy  of,  33  et  seq. ; 
collapse  of  the  conspiracy,  40; 
shot,  44 ;  Duruy's  article  on,  45 ; 
Thiers's  views  of,  47 ;  his  provis- 
ional government,  47;  his  con- 
spiracy the  prologue  of  the  Royal- 
ist  movement  of  1814,  47.  " 

Marcolini  Palace,  Napoleon  estab- 
lished in,  213;  Metternich's  con- 
ference with  him  at,  217. 

Marie  Louise,  return  of,  to  Saint 
Cloud,  1 ;  her  timidity,  2 ;  mourns 
the  absence  of  her  husband,  3; 
surprised  by  the  arrival  of  the 
Guards  at  Saint  Cloud  after 
Malet's  conspiracy,  41 ;  receives  a 
letter  from  her  father  respecting 
peace,  and  sends  him  a  breakfast 
service,  107;  congratulates  Pius 
VII.  on  the  signing  of  the  Con- 
cordat, 118;  her  letter  to  her 
father  thereupon,  119;  becomes 
regent  of  France,  187 ;  her  func- 
tions, 188 ;  her  dowry  settled,  190 ; 
her  sadness  at  Napoleon's  depart- 
ure, 192 ;  receives  the  Diplomatic 
Body  at  Saint  Cloud,  193 ;  at  Notre 
Dame  at  the  celebration  of  the  bat- 
tle of  Liitzen,  200 ;  writes  to  her 
father  in  the  prospect  of  peace, 
203;  thinks  she  is  at  the  end  of 


INDEX. 


317 


her  trials,  211 ;  joins  Napoleon  at 
Mayence,  226  et  seq.;  not  with- 
out uneasiness,  231 ;  returns  to 
Saint  Cloud,  232;  her  melan- 
choly, 234;  her  birthday  cele- 
brated, 247;  presides  over  the 
opening  of  the  basin  at  Cher- 
bourg, 249 ;  letter  of,  to  her  father, 
255;  makes  a  solemn  appeal  to 
French  patriotism,  258;  receives 
deputations  from  six  cities,  271 ; 
filled  with  gloom,  277 ;  loyal  to 
her  husband,  but  ignorant  of  the 
real  situation,  289 ;  made  regent, 
312;  bids  farewell  to  her  husband, 
313. 

Maro-Jaroslawitz,  battle  of,  50. 

Maury,  Abbe,  his  address  to  Marie 
Louise  at  the  celebration  of  the 
battle  of  Liitzen,  200. 

Melito,  Count  Miot  de,  quoted,  287, 
388. 

Meneval,  Baron  of,  made  private 
secretary  to  Marie  Louise,  187. 

Metteruich,  Count,  despatch  of, 
concerning  a  general  peace,  104; 
attacked  by  the  anti-French  fac- 
tion in  Vienna,  153 ;  modifies  his 
attitude  towards  France  after  the 
defection  of  the  Prussian  contin- 
gent, 155 ;  his  programme,  157 ; 
on  the  Russian  alliance,  161 ;  the 
opposition  to  him  in  the  Austrian 
court  and  government,  166;  his 
reception  of  Narbonne,  174; 
alarmed  at  the  progress  of  revo- 
lutionary ideas,  177;  satisfaction 
of,  after  the  battle  of  Liitzeu,  207 ; 
his  account  of  his  conference  with 
Napoleon  at  the  Marcolini  Palace, 
217  et  seq.;  discrepancies  in  his 
accounts  of  this  conference,  220 ; 
warns  Narbonne  that  Austria 
would  join  the  allies  after  August 
10,  223;  his  talk  with  the  Duke 
of  Vicenza,  227;  communicates 
Napoleon's  overtures  to  Francis 
II.,  and  transmits  Austria's  ulti- 
matum to  the  Duke  of  Vicenza, 


240;  proposes  to  the  allies  over- 
tures of  peace  with  Napoleon,  275. 

Mollien,  Count,  describes  the  scene 
of  the  evening  before  Napoleon's 
departure,  309. 

Moniteur,  Napoleon's  bulletins  in 
the,  31,  69;  article  in,  on  Malet's 
conspiracy,  45 ;  the  29th  bulletin 
in,  announcing  the  disasters  of 
the  army,  78,  84;  Napoleon's  re- 
turn announced,  85;  the  para- 
graph in,  with  regard  to  Napoleon, 
110;  describes  the  celebration  of 
the  battle  of  Liitzen,  202;  an- 
nouncement in,  of  the  reception 
by  the  Emperor  of  the  Legislative 
Body,  284. 

Montesquiou,  Major,  sent  forward 
by  Napoleon  to  inform  Europe  of 
the  events  of  the  Russian  cam- 
paign, 71;  arrives  at  Paris,  80; 
carries  the  news  of  the  victory  of 
Bautzen  to  Marie  Louise,  208. 

Moreau,  has  his  legs  shot  off,  252. 

Morfontaine,  Joseph  Bonaparte's 
court  at,  291. 

Moscow,  arrival  of  the  French  ar- 
my at,  13 ;  burning  of,  15 ;  the 
exodus  from,  27. 

Murat,  King,  defection  of,  296; 
joins  Austria  against  France, 
298. 

Murat,  Caroline,  sides  with  Aus- 
tria, 296. 

Narbonne,  General,  equanimity  of, 
during  the  retreat  from  Moscow, 
111 ;  Villemaine's  opinion  of,  169 ; 
Napoleon's  fondness  for,  170;  a 
model  diplomatist,  171 ;  report  of 
his  first  interview  with  Francis 
II.,  172;  his  eyes  opened  to  the 
true  state  of  things,  175;  pre- 
dicts Metternich's  policy,  17H: 
reports  the  hostile  spirit  which 
animates  Vienna  society,  179; 
hopes  for  the  neutrality  of  Aus- 
tria, 180;  informs  Napoleon  of 
the  truth  regarding  Francis  II., 


318 


INDEX. 


181;  reports  the  opposition  in 
Vienna  to  the  Emperor's  posi- 
tion, 195;  reports  Metternich's 
satisfaction,  2Q7;  his  prophecies 
verified,  235. 

Napoleon  governs  his  empire  from 
the  heart  of  Russia,  2 ;  his  birth- 
day celebrated  in  Paris  and  on 
the  Dneiper,  6 ;  his  sluggishness 
at  the  battle  of  Borodino,  12 ;  en- 
ters Moscow,  13;  forced  by  the 
fire  to  leave,  16;  returns  to  the 
Kremlin,  18;  his  error  with  re- 
gard to  Moscow,  22;  his  blun- 
ders, 24;  his  indecision,  25;  de- 
cides to  abandon  Moscow,  26 ;  his 
bulletins  in  the  Moniteur,  31; 
narrowly  escapes  being  made 
prisoner,  51;  hears  of  Malet's 
conspiracy,  53;  feels  that  all  is 
lost,  60;  decides  to  return  to 
Paris,  65 ;  his  deceptive  bulletins, 
69;  his  journey  to  Paris,  68 
et  seq.;  letter  of,  to  Francis  II., 
74;  his  29th  bulletin,  78;  arrives 
at  Paris,  81 ;  receives  the  Minis- 
ters, 82 :  his  reply  to  the  address 
of  the  Senate,  90;  receives  a  dep- 
utation from  the  Department  of 
the  Tiber,  92;  the  Prefect  of  the 
Seine  makes  his  address,  93;  lis- 
tens only  to  flatterers,  95 ;  his  de- 
termination to  have  all  or  noth- 
ing, 109 ;  devotes  himself  to  hunt- 
ing, 111 ;  goes  to  Fontainebleau  to 
confer  with  Pius  VII.,  112 ;  letter 
of,  to  Francis  II.,  respecting  the 
Concordat,  119;  his  letter  to  the 
Bishop  oi  Nantes  on  the  papal 
sovereignty,  121;  his  letter  to 
Frederick  William  on  the  Prus- 
sian contingent,  126;  sets  too 
much  importance  on  his  marriage 
with  Marie  Louise,  146;  imagines 
that  Austria  would  continue  his 
ally,  159;  recalls  Count  Otto 
from  Vienna  and  sends  the  Count 
of  Narbonne  in  his  place,  160; 
desires  war,  167 ;  his  estimate  of 


the  Count  of  Narbonne,  171 ;  and 
of  the  aristocratic  element  in  di- 
plomacy, 171;  creates  an  army 
of  three  hundred  thousand  in 
three  months,  183;  his  haughty 
language,  183;  imagines  that 
Francis  II.  will  never  abandon  his 
daughter's  cause,  184;  visits  the 
Invalides,  186;  decides  to  make 
the  Empress  regent,  187;  marks 
out  for  the  Empress  her  line  of 
conduct  in  everything,  189;  letter 
of,  to  Francis  II.,  191 ;  leaves  to 
take  command  of  his  armies,  192; 
his  victory  at  Liitzen,  197;  in- 
forms Francis  II.  of  the  victory  of 
Liitzen,  198;  letters  of,  to  Francis 
II.,  205 ;  wins  the  battle  of  Baut- 
zen, 208;  his  emotion  on  Duroc's 
death,  210;  unable  to  profit  by 
his  experience,  210;  decrees  a 
monument  on  the  Alps,  212 ;  es- 
tablishes himself  in  the  Marcolini 
Palace  at  Dresden,  213;  prefers 
comedy  to  tragedy,  214;  his  long 
conference  with  Metternich,  217 ; 
his  conversation  with  Goethe  in 
1808,  224 ;  sends  for  Marie  Louise 
to  join  him  at  Mayence,  225; 
leaves  Mayence  eager  for  war, 
232;  his  despatch  to  the  Duke  of 
Vicenza  respecting  Austria's  last 
word,  238 ;  receives  the  Austrian 
ultimatum,  240;  sends  a  proposi- 
tion to  Prague,  242 ;  his  birthday 
celebrated  August  10,  242 ;  sends 
his  ultimatum  to  Caulaincourt, 
245;  gives  him  full  power  and 
concedes  Austria's  demands,  247 ; 
his  birthday  celebrated  in  Paris, 
248;  fights  the  battle  of  Dresden, 
252;  feels  that  he  is  losing,  253; 
fights  the  battle  of  Leipsic,  262 
etseq.;  his  first  defeat,  265;  re- 
flections on  his  course,  265;  his 
remal-ks  on  the  campaign  at 
Saint  Helena,  267;  his  despon- 
dency, 271 ;  sends  captured  bat- 
tle-flags to  Marie  Louise,  273; 


INDEX. 


319 


returns  to  Paris,  274;  receives 
overtures  of  peace  from  the 
allies,  274;  gives  an  evasive  an- 
swer, 276 ;  decides  too  late  to  ac- 
cept, 276 ;  his  address  to  the  Sen- 
ate, 279;  adjourns  the  Legislative 
Body,  283 ;  his  furious  address  to 
the  Legislative  Body,  284;  his 
confidential  admissions,  286 ;  dis- 
trusts his  Ministers,  288;  calm 
and  majestic  in  his  demeanor, 
288 ;  on  bad  terms  with  his  broth- 
ers, 291 ;  his  proposition  to  Joseph 
Bonaparte,  294,  295 ;  restores  the 
Roman  States  to  the  Pope,  299; 
his  love  for  his  son,  305;  scene 
with  the  National  Guard  and  the 
King  of  Rome,  305 ;  bids  farewell 
to  his  wife  and  son,  313. 
Ney,  Marshal,  protests  against 
Napoleon's  sluggishness  at  Boro- 
dino, 120 ;  commends  the  bravery 
of  the  French  conscripts,  198. 

Otto,  Count,  his  letter  on  Malet's 
conspiracy,  45 ;  hands  Francis  II. 
Napoleon's  letter  containing  the 
Concordat,  120;  French  Ambassa- 
dor at  Vienna,  146;  a  persona 
grata  at  the  Austrian  court,  146 ; 
informs  the  Duke  of  Bassano  of 
the  anti-French  feeling  in  Aus- 
tria, 147;  reports  the  offer  of 
Francis  II.  of  intervention  with 
Russia,  148;  letter  of,  to  Napo- 
leon on  the  situation  in  Vienna 
after  the  Russian  disaster,  150; 
reports  that  the  prevailing  senti- 
ment is  in  favor  of  abandoning 
France,  151 ;  reports  Metternich's 
changed  attitude,  155 ;  writes  of 
the  Austrian  Emperor's  upright 
character,  159;  on  the  coronation 
of  Marie  Louise  and  tin*  King  of 
Rome,  159;  recalled  from  Vienna, 
160;  reports  Mettornieli's  words 
on  the  Russian  alliance,  161 ;  re- 
ports alarm  about  revolutionary 
tendencies,  163;  and  the  antag- 


onism throughout  Europe  to 
France,  165;  his  wise  counsels, 
168. 

Pasquier,  M.,  arrested  by  Malet's 
conspirators,  37. 

Pius  VII.,  a  prisoner  at  Fontaine- 
bleau,  112;  visited  by  Napoleon, 
114;  induced  to  accept  the  Con- 
cordat, 116$  his  anguish,  117; 
signs  the  Concordat,  118;  repents 
his  signing  the  Concordat,  122; 
recants,  123;  refuses  Napoleon's 
offer  of  the  Roman  States,  300; 
leaves  Fontainebleau,  310. 

Poniatowski,  Prince,  drowned  in 
the  Elster,  264. 

Prague,  Congress  of,  236. 

Prussia,  feeling  in,  towards  Napo- 
leon, 127,  129;  rising  of,  against 
Napoleon,  143;  war  declared  be- 
tween France  and,  145. 

Prussian  court,  the  situation  of 
the,  in  1812,  125;  contemplates  a 
matrimonial  alliance  with  Napo- 
leon's family,  133;  secret  plliance 
of,  with  Russia,  140. 

Retreat  from  Russia,  the,  50  et  seq.  • 
horrors  of,  55;  anecdote  of,  57; 
General  de  Segur's  account  of, 
59. 

Rome,  the  King  of,  4 ;  portrait 
of,  brought  to  Napoleon  in  Rus- 
sia, 9 ;  his  prayer  for  peace,  108 ; 
Napoleon's  farewell  of,  303;  his 
character,  304. 

Rovigo,  Duke  of,  arrested  by  Ma- 
let's conspirators,  37 ;  laughed  at 
on  account  of  his  arrest.  4_': 
closeted  with  Napoleon,  83. 

Russia,  court  of,  makes  a  secret 
alliance  with  Prussia,  140. 

Russian  army  enters  Bohemia  Au- 
gust 10,  244. 

Russian  invasion,  army  of,  its  fate, 
%. 

Russian  campaign,  tin-  early  ditli- 
cult  IPS  of,  6 ;  uneasiness  in  Franc*- 


320 


INDEX. 


concerning,   29;    retreat    begun, 
51;  cold  weather  begins,  54. 

Saint  Aignan,  Baron  of,  comes  to 
Paris  with  an  overture  of  peace 
from  the  allies,  274. 

Saint-Amand,  General,  letter  from, 
describing  his  experiences  in  the 
Russian  campaign,  99. 

Saint-Andre,  Jean  Bon,  dines  with 
Napoleon,  228;  his  curious  re- 
mark to  Count  Beugnot,  230. 

Saint  Cloud,  Marie  Louise's  return 
to,  1 ;  Blucher  at,  7. 

Saint  Marsan,  Count  of,  French 
Minister  at  Berlin,  126 ;  report  of, 
on  the  King's  reception  of  Napo- 
leon's letter,  127;  and  on  the  state 
of  affairs  in  Prussia,  127,  129; 
awakened  from  his  delusions, 
130;  receives  the  King's  dis- 
avowal of  General  York's  defec- 
tion, 132;  his  letter  concerning 
the  Prussian  matrimonial  project, 
135, 136 ;  his  report  of  Baron  von 
Hardenberg's  protestations,  137; 
reports  that  Prussia  is  about  to 
abandon  France,  140;  letter  of, 
on  the  Russian  alliance,  141 ;  re- 
ports the  alliance  publicly  an- 
nounced, 144. 

Schwarzenberg,  Prince,  does  not 
dare  to  tell  Napoleon  the  truth 
about  the  Austrian  situation,  190  ; 
informs  the  Empress  of  the  pos- 
sibility of  Austria's  enmity,  195; 
eager  for  war,  235. 

Segur,  General  de,  his  story  of  the 
retreat,  59,  Heine's  description  of 
it,  59;  quoted,  96;  on  the  2V 
yendbund,  269;  describes  the  in- 
vasion of  France,  280. 

Senate,  presented  to  Napoleon  on 
his  return  from  Russia,  86;  speech 
of  the  President  of,  87. 

Senators,  obsequiousness  of,  308. 


Sicilies,  the  Two,  the  two  queens  of, 
296. 

Soulier,  Colonel,  made  a  participa- 
tor in  Malet's  conspiracy,  35; 
shot,  44. 

Spain,  Napoleon's  negotiations 
with,  too  late,  292. 

Stein,  Baron  von,  and  General  York 
stir  up  Prussia  against  France, 
137. 

Talleyrand,  presents  the  Senators 
to  Napoleon  on  his  return  from 
Russia,  86;  declines  the  port- 
folio of  Foreign  Affairs,  277. 

Thiers's  view  of  Malet's  conspiracy, 
47;  describes  Napoleon's  de- 
meanor after  Duroc's  death,  210 ; 
quoted,  216;  his  account  of  Met- 
ternich's  conference  with  Napo- 
leon at  Dresden,  218. 

Tolstoi,  his  War  and  Peace,  quoted, 
23,  59. 

Vandamme,  General,  defeated  at 
Culm,  253. 

Vicenza,  the  Duke  of  (Caulain- 
court),  accompanies  Napoleon  to 
Paris,  66;  urges  Napoleon  to 
make  peace,  232;  reports  the  con- 
dition of  affairs  at  Prague,  237; 
has  a  secret  interview  with  Met- 
teruich  concerning  Napoleon's 
confidential  overtures,  239;  letter 
of,  to  Napoleon  regarding  Aus- 
tria's ultimatum,  241;  his  anx- 
iety, 243;  communicates  Napo- 
leon's proposition  to  Metternich, 
244;  receives  Napoleon's  ultima- 
tum, 245;  letter  of,  to  Napoleon, 
246;  appointed  ,  Minister  of  For- 
eign Affairs,  277. 

York,  General,  takes  his  corps  to 
the  Russian  side,  130;  his  letter 
to  Frederick  William,  131. 


Typography  by  J.  S.  Gushing  &  Co.,  Boston. 


Presswork  by  Berwick  &  Smith,  Boston.  ^X^^C 


FAMOUS    WOMEN    OF   THE 
FRENCH   COURT. 


CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS,   PUBLISHERS. 


\17ITHIN  the  past  few  years  M.  Imbert  de  Saint- 
*  *  Amand  has  written  a  series  of  volumes  which 
have  made  him  one  of  the  most  popular  authors  of 
France.  Each  has  for  its  nucleus  some  portion  of  the 
life  of  one  of  the  eminent  women  who  have  presided 
over  or  figured  at  the  French  court,  either  at  Ver- 
sailles or  the  Tuileries.  But  though  thus  largely 
biographical  and  possessing  the  interest  inseparable 
from  personality,  the  volumes  are  equally  pictures  of 
the  times  they  describe.  He  is  himself  saturated  with 
the  literature  and  history  of  the  period,  and  what 
mainly  distinguishes  his  books  is  the  fact  that  they 
are  in  considerable  part  made  up  of  contemporary 
letters  and  memoirs,  so  that  the  reader  hears  the 
characters  themselves  speak,  and  is  brought  into  the 
closest  imaginary  contact  with  them.  Moreover,  the 
complexion  of  the  mosaic  thus  cleverly  mortised  is 
familiar  rather  than  heroic.  The  historian  is  nofr 
above  gossip  in  its  good  sense,  and  the  way  in  which 
the  life  of  the  time  and  of  its  distinguished  person- 
ages is  depicted  is  extremely  intimate  as  well  as  vivid 
and  truthful. 

The  first  volumes  to  appear,  rendered  into  particu- 
larly idiomatic  English  by  Mr.  Thomas  Sergeant 
Perry,  whose  accomplishments  as  a  translator  are  well 
known,  relate  to  Marie  Antoinette,  Josephine  as  wife 
of  the  First  Consul,  and  Marie  Louise.  They  give  a 
vivid  representation  of  the  momentous  times  imme- 
diately before,  during,  and  after  the  epoch  of  the 
Revolution.  Probably  no  times  in  any  country  were 


ever  so  picturesque,  so  crowded  with  events,  and  so 
peopled  with  striking  characters.  The  characteristics  of 
the  ancient  regime,  the  occupations  of  the  courtiers  at 
Versailles  and  other  incidents  of  the  old  order  of  things 
tottering  to  its  fall,  are  grouped  effectively  around  the 
sympathetic  figure  of  Louis  Sixteenth's  queen.  Josephine 
is  taken  as  the  centre  of  the  new  society  that  issued  from 
the  disorganization  wrought  by  the  Revolution,  and  in 
"  The  Happy  Days  of  the  Empress  Marie  Louise,"  we 
are  led  behind  the  scenes  and  shown  the  domestic  life  as 
well  as  the  splendid  court  pomp  of  the  world's  Conqueror 
at  the  acme  of  his  career. 


THE   WIFE    OF   THE    FIRST    CONSUL.     By    IMBERT   DE 

SAINT-AMAND.     Translated  by  THOMAS  SERGEANT 

PERRY. 
THE  HAPPY  DAYS  OF  THE  EMPRESS  MARIE  LOUISE.     By 

the  same. 
MARIE  ANTOINETTE  AND  THE  END  OF  ^HE  OLD  REGIME. 

By  the  same 

CITIZENESS  BONAPARTE. 
MARIE  LOUISE  AND  THE  DECADENCE  OF  THE  EMPIRE. 

THE  COURT  OF  THE  EMPRESS  JOSEPHINE. 

Each  with  Portrait.     12mo.     $1 .25  per  volume. 


CHARLES   SCRIBNER'S   SONS, 

PUBLISHERS, 
BROADWAY,  NEW   YORK 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  EDITION 


MEMOIRS   OF 

NAPOLEON  BONAPARTE 

BY  LOUIS  ANTOINE  FAUVELET  DE  BOURRIENNE 

His  Private  Secretary 
"With  34  Full-page  Portraits  and  Other  Illustrations 

EDITED  BY  COL.  R.  W.    PHIPPS.      NEW  AND  REVISED   EDITION 


The  Set,  4  Vols.,  12mo,  Cloth,  in  a  Box,  $5.00 

Characteristic  bindings  in  Half  Morocco  and  Half  Calf,  specially  designed 

for  this  work,  can  now  be  supplied 

The  Set,  4  Vols.,  in   a  box,  Half  Morocco,  gilt  top,         .        .        .         $8.00 
"  "  "  Half  Calf,  "  10.00 


CHARLES   SCRIBNER'S   SONS,  PUBLISHERS 
NEW  YORK 


FOR  sixty  years  Bourrienne's  "Memoirs  of  Napoleon" 
has  been  a  standard  authority  to  which  every  one 
has  turned  for  a  graphic,  entertaining  picture  of 
the  man  as  he  appeared  to  his  intimate  friend  and  Secre- 
tary. Bourrienne,  who  had  been  the  friend  and  com- 
panion of  Napoleon  at  school,  became  his  Secretary  in 
1797  and  remained  in  this  confidential  position  till  1802. 
His  "  Memoirs "  has  heretofore  been  accessible  only  in 
the  English  editions.  It  is  now  proposed  to  publish 
immediately  in  a  popular  Library  Edition,  in  four  i2mo 
volumes,  an  exact  reprint  of  the  latest  English  edition. 
This  American  edition  will  contain  the  thirty-four  por- 
traits and  other  illustrations  of  the  original,  together  witli 
all  the  other  features  that  give  distinction  to  the  work — 
the  chronology  of  Napoleon's  life,  the  prefaces  to  the 


BOURRIENN&S    "NAPOLEONS 


several  editions,  the  author's  introduction,  and  the  addi- 
tional matter  which  supplements  Bourrienne's  work,  an 
account  of  the  important  events  of  the  Hundred  Days, 
of  Napoleon's  surrender  to  the  English,  and  of  his  resi- 
dence and  death  at  St.  Helena,  with  anecdotes  and  illus- 
trative extracts  from  contemporary  Memoirs.  The  per- 
sonality of  one  of  the  greatest  figures  in  history  is  placed 
before  the  reader  with  remarkable  fidelity  and  dramatic 
power  by  one  who  was  the  Emperor's  confidant  and  the 
sharer  of  his  thoughts  and  fortunes.  The  picture  of  the 
man  Napoleon  is  of  fascinating  interest.  Besides  this, 
the  book  is  full  of  the  most  interesting  anecdotes,  bon 
mots,  character  sketches,  dramatic  incidents,  and  the 
gossip  of  court  and  camp  at  one  of  the  most  stirring 
epochs  of  history,  taken  from  contemporary  Memoirs  and 
incorporated  in  the  work  by  the  editors  of  the  different 
editions. 


LIST  OF  PORTRAITS,  ETC. 


NAPOLEON  I. 
LETITIA  RAMOLINO 
THE  EMPRESS  JOSEPH- 
INE 

EUGENE  BEAUHARNAIS 
GENERAL   KLEBER 
MARSHAL  LANNES 
TALLEYRAND 
GENERAL  DUROC 
MURAT,  KING  OF  NAPLES 
GENERAL  DESAIX 
GENERAL  MOREAU 
HORTENSE      BEAUHAR- 
NAIS 

THE  EMPRESS  JOSEPH- 
INE 
NAPOLEON  I. 


THE  DUC  D'ENGHIEN 

GENERAL  PICHEGRU 

MARSHAL  NEY 

CAULAINCOURT,  DUKE 
OF  VICENZA 

MARSHAL  DAVOUST 

CHARGE  OF  THE  CUIR- 
ASSIERS AT  EYLAU 

GENERAL  JUNOT 

MARSHAL  SOULT 

THE  EMPRESS  MARIA 
LOUISA 

GENERAL  LASALLE 

COLORED  MAP  SHOW- 
ING NAPOLEON'S  DO- 
MINION 

THE  EMPRESS  MARIA 
LOUISA 


MARSHAL  MASSENA 
MARSHAL  MACDONALD 
FAC-SIMILE  OF  THE  EM- 
PEROR'S ABDICATION 
IN  1814 
NAPOLEON  I. 
MARSHAL  SOUCHET 
THE  DUKE  OF  WELLING- 
TON 
PLANS    OF    BATTLE  OF 

WATERLOO 
MARSHAL  BLUCHER 
MARSHAL  GOUVION  ST. 

CYR 

MARSHAL  NEY 
THE  KING  OF  ROME 
GENERAL  BESSIERES 


BOURRIENNE'S    "NAPOLEON.* 


"If  y°u  want  something  to  read,  both  interesting  and 
amusing,  get  the  MJmoires  de  Bourrienne.  These  are  the  only 
authentic  Memoirs  of  Napoleon  which  have  yet  appeared.  The 
style  is  not  brilliant,  but  that  only  makes  them  the  more  trust- 
worthy"— PRINCE  METTERNICH. 

"The  writer  was  a  man  of  uncommon  penetration, 
and  he  enjoyed  opportunities  for  intimate  knowledge  of 
Napoleon's  life  and  character  such  as  no  other  person 
possessed  ;  and  the  liveliness  of  his  style  renders  the 
Memoirs  interesting  reading  from  the  first  page  to  the 
last.  The  volumes  are  enriched  with  a  large  number  of 
excellent  portraits."  — The  Academy. 

"  It  is  a  brilliant  picture  of  Napoleon  as  he  appeared 
in  his  daily  life  to  one  who  held  the  unique  position  of 
friend,  Minister  and  Secretary,  depicting  the  personality 
of  the  Emperor  with  extraordinary  vividness  and  truth- 
fulness. It  is  impossible  not  to  recognize  the  great 
value  of  these  Memoirs." — New  York  Times. 

"  M.  de  Bourrienne  shows  us  the  hero  of  Marengo  and 
Austerlitz  in  his  night-gown  and  slippers — with  a  trait  de 
plume  he,  in  a  hundred  instances,  places  the  real  man  before 
us,  with  all  of  his  personal  habits  and  peculiarities  of  manner, 
temper  and  conversation." — FROM  THE  PREFACE. 


THE  SET,  4  VOLS.,   12MO,  IN  A  BOX,  $5.00. 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW 

AN  INITIAL  FINE  OF  25  CENTS 

WILL  BE  ASSESSED  FOR  FAILURE  TO  RETURN 
THIS  BOOK  ON  THE  DATE  DUE.  THE  PENALTY 
WILL  INCREASE  TO  SO  CENTS  ON  THE  FOURTH 
DAY  AND  TO  $t.OO  ON  THE  SEVENTH  DAY 
OVERDUE. 


"*   2     1S4? 

.. 

. 

--     •        ,         :   ^       ,. 

W&tfRAilt 

Iff 

^C8     1QR4  I  U 

WAn    6196715 

Miyp     /  b/    5 

.  -   r^P'P'T- 

I^OAM  ^^^ 

LD  21-100W-12,  '43  (8796s) 

VD 


CTO 


5845 


